Foreign relations of Ethiopia

Like many states in sub-Saharan Africa, Ethiopia was relatively isolated from other countries not immediately adjacent to her, until well into the 19th century. Many historians trace modern Ethiopian foreign policy to the reign of Emperor Tewodros II, whose primary concerns were the security of Ethiopia's traditional borders, obtaining technology from Europe (or modernization), and to a lesser degree Ethiopian rights to the monastery of Dar-es-Sultan in the city of Jerusalem. Tewodros' diplomatic efforts, however, ended disastrously with the British expedition of 1868 which concluded with his death. Despite the efforts of his successor Emperor Yohannes IV to establish a relationship with the United Kingdom, Ethiopia was ignored by the world powers until the opening of the Suez Canal, and more importantly the Mahdist War, drew outside attention to her once more.

The same major interests that Tewodros had -- the security of Ethiopia's traditional borders and modernization -- were once again foremost, as demonstrated by the outcome of the First Italo–Ethiopian War, Ethiopia's admission to the League of Nations (28 September 1923), and the 1935 Second Italo-Abyssinian War. Although Emperor Haile Selassie agreed to an agreement with the British government to help him restore order to Ethiopia, which benefited him in crushing the Woyane Rebellion, he patiently worked to its eventual termination. Since World War II, Ethiopia has played an active role in world and African affairs. Ethiopia was a charter member of the United Nations and took part in UN operations in Korea in 1951 and the Congo in 1960. Former Emperor Haile Selassie was a founder of the Organization of African Unity (OAU). Addis Ababa is the host capital for the UN Economic Commission for Africa and the OAU.

Although nominally a member of the Non-Aligned Movement, after the 1974 revolution, Ethiopia moved into a close relationship with the Soviet Union and its allies and supported their international policies and positions until the change of government in 1991.

Today, Ethiopia has very good relations with the U.S. and the West, especially in responding to regional instability and, increasingly, through economic involvement. Ethiopia's relations with Eritrea are extremely tense due to an ongoing border dispute. Continuing instability along Ethiopia's borders with Sudan and Somalia contributes to tension with the National Islamic Front regime in Sudan and several factions in Somalia.

International disputes

Somalia

• Most of the southern half of the boundary with Somalia is a Provisional Administrative Line, not an international boundary
• Somaliland secessionists provide port facilities and trade ties to landlocked Ethiopia
• Territorial dispute with Somalia over the Ogaden
• Although the Government of Ethiopia has allied with local clans in opposition to the Transitional National Government in the past, it currently is supporting the Transitional Government against its main rival, the Islamic Courts Union.
• As of 2007 Ethiopia shelters 16,576 refugees from Somalia.

Eritrea

• Dispute over alignment of boundary with Eritrea led to the Eritrean-Ethiopian War (1998 - 2000), which was resolved by an independent boundary commission's delimitation decision in 2002. However, demarcation has been delayed, despite intense international intervention, by Ethiopian insistence that the decision ignored "human geography," made technical errors in the delimitation, and determined that certain disputed areas, specifically Badme, fall to Eritrea. Eritrea meanwhile insists on not deviating from the commission's decision. The peacekeepers monitoring the disputed boundary were forced to withdraw in July 2008 having considered their remaining options after experiencing serious difficulties in supporting its troops.

• As of 2007 Ethiopia shelters 13,078 refugees from Eritrea, most notably 4,860 Kunama.

Sudan

Relations between Ethiopia and Sudan were very good following the end of the Ethiopian Civil War, due to the support that the Sudanese government had given to the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front. However, relations were strained for a time following the 26 June 1995 assassination attempt against Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak as he was leaving the OAU summit meeting in Addis Ababa. The subsequent investigation revealed that Sudan was involved in this act, forcing the Ethiopian government to take a series of steps against Sudan that September, which included closing the Sudanese consulate in Gambela, reducing the number of Sudanese embassy staff, and terminating all Sudan Airways and Ethiopian Airlines flights between the two countries. However the start of the Eritrean-Ethiopian War led to Sudan and Ethiopia put this conflict between them and normalizing their relations by November 1999 when president Omar Hassan al-Bashir made a formal visit to Addis Ababa.

Efforts to demarcate the porous boundary with Sudan were delayed by the Second Sudanese Civil War. In May 2008, residents along the western Ethiopian border reportedly discovered that the government had agreed to demarcate this boundary when Sudanese soldiers forced them out of their homes. It was reported that as many as 2,000 people were displaced in the Gambela Region, and the Sudanese army reportedly set fire to two dozen Ethiopian farms and imprisoned 34 people in the Amhara Region. However, Prime Minister Meles Zenawi publicly denied that any Ethiopians had been displaced by this agreement.

As of 2007 Ethiopia shelters 66,980 refugees from Sudan, most of whom live in refugee camps in the Benishangul-Gumuz and Gambela Regions.

Illicit drugs

• Transit hub for heroin originating in Southwest and Southeast Asia and destined for Europe and North America, as well as cocaine destined for markets in southern Africa.
• Cultivates qat (khat) for local use and regional export, principally to Djibouti and Somalia.
• Lack of a well-developed financial system limits the country's usefulness as a money-laundering center

Relations by country

Country	Formal Relations Began	Notes
Canada	1960	See Canada–Ethiopia relations Since 1966, Canada has an embassy in Addis Ababa. Ethiopia currently has an embassy in Ottawa.
Eritrea		(see above)
Finland	1959-07-17	See Ethiopia–Finland relations Ethiopia is represented in Finland through its embassy in Stockholm, Sweden. Finland has an embassy in Addis Ababa.
Ireland	1994	See Ethiopia–Ireland relations Ethiopia has an embassy in Dublin. Since 1994, Ireland has an embassy in Addis Ababa.
Israel	1992	Ethiopia has an embassy in Tel Aviv; the ambassador is also accredited to the Holy See, Greece and Cyprus. Israel has an embassy in Addis Ababa. See also Operation Moses, Operation Solomon, History of the Jews in Ethiopia Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs about relations with Israel
Mexico		During the Italian occupation of Ethiopia, Mexico was the only country to condemn the occupation of the country in the League of Nations. Since then, relations between the two nations have strengthened. In Addis Ababa, Ethiopia thanked Mexico by naming a square in the city called "Plaza Mexico." Mexico then named a metro station in Mexico City called Metro Etiopía. Mexico re-opened its embassy in Addis Ababa in 2007. Ethiopia is represented in Mexico through its embassy in Washington DC. It also has an honorary consulate in Mexico City. History of Mexican/Ethiopian relations
Qatar		See Ethiopia-Qatar relations Ethiopia abruptly broke diplomatic ties with Qatar in April 2008, apparently due to statements made by the Al-Jazeera news channel which is based in Qatar.
Romania		Ethiopia is represented in Romania through its embassy in Vienna (Austria). Romania has an embassy in Addis Ababa. Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs about bilateral relations with Romania
Russia		Russia currently has an embassy in Addis Ababa. Ethiopia has an embassy in Moscow. The Ethiopian ambassador to Russia is also accredited to Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kirgizstan, Moldova, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan. The history of this relationship has its origins in the 19th century. Russia supplied the mountain guns the Ethiopian army used in the Battle of Adwa. More recently, the Soviet Union was a major source of military and economic aid during the Deg and People's Democratic Republic of Ethiopia. See also Alexander Bulatovich Relations are somewhat unsure owing to Russia's close ties with Ethiopia's neighboring rival, Sudan.
Somalia		(see above)
South Korea	1963-12-23	South Korea has an embassy in Addis Ababa.
Sudan		(see above)
Turkey		See Ethiopian–Turkish relations Ethiopia has an embassy in Ankara. Turkey has an embassy in Addis Ababa since 1925. Turkey was the sixth country to open an embassy in Ethiopia. Today the relations between the two countries are described as excellent, both politically and economically.
United States	1903	See Ethiopia – United States relations Ethiopia is a strategic partner of the United States in the Global War on Terrorism. U.S. development assistance to Ethiopia is focused on reducing famine vulnerability, hunger, and poverty and emphasizes economic, governance, and social sector policy reforms.

See also

• Category:Ethiopian diaspora
• Diplomatic missions of Ethiopia
• Ethiopia-United States relations
• Foreign aid to Ethiopia
• List of diplomatic missions in Ethiopia
• Ministry of Foreign Affairs

External links

• Ministry of Foreign Affairs for Ethiopia's webpage
• A Tangled Political Landscape Raises Questions About African Ally of the U.S. by Michael Deibert, 12 June 2008
• Abdul Mohammed, "Ethiopia’s Strategic Dilemma in the Horn of Africa", Crisis in the Horn of Africa (Social Science Research Council website)

 This article incorporates public domain material from The World Factbook. CIA.