Ethiopia Cuts Diplomatic Ties With Eritrea, Expels 10 Diplomats as Tensions Rise

Ethiopia has cut diplomatic ties with Eritrea and expelled 10 Eritrean diplomats as tensions between the neighbouring countries continue to escalate.

In a statement dated October 1, 2026, Ethiopia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it had closed its embassy in Asmara and declared the 10 Eritrean diplomats persona non grata.

The ministry ordered the diplomats to leave Ethiopia within 48 hours, citing what it described as hostile actions and threats to Ethiopia’s national security.

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia has decided to close its Embassy in Asmara, Eritrea, in response to Eritrea’s direct and indirect acts of hostility and belligerence against Ethiopia,” the ministry said.

Ethiopia Expels 10 Eritrean Diplomats

According to the ministry, the expelled diplomats had engaged in activities that posed a direct threat to Ethiopia’s national security, with Addis Ababa citing the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.

Among those expelled were Eritrea’s chargé d’affaires and other officials accredited to the African Union.

Meanwhile, Addis Ababa urged Asmara to stop actions that it said violated the principles governing relations between sovereign states.

Despite the diplomatic fallout, Ethiopia said it continued to value the historical, cultural and people-to-people ties between the two countries.

Furthermore, the Ethiopian government said it remained committed to peaceful coexistence, regional stability and integration.

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Eritrea Responds to Ethiopia

Hours after Ethiopia announced the closure of its embassy and the expulsion of the diplomats, Eritrea responded by severing diplomatic relations with its neighbour.

“Eritrea has no option but to reciprocate in kind and sever all diplomatic ties with Ethiopia with all the negative corollaries that this entails,” Eritrea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.

The diplomatic dispute comes as fighting continues in northern Ethiopia, where government forces have clashed with an opposition alliance that includes the Tigray People’s Liberation Front.

Ethiopia has accused Eritrea of supporting the alliance, while Asmara has rejected the allegation and accused Addis Ababa of pursuing an aggressive agenda against Eritrea.

Tensions Rise Over Regional Security

Beyond the fighting in northern Ethiopia, Eritrea has accused Ethiopia of seeking access to its ports and coastal areas.

At the same time, Asmara has accused Addis Ababa of hosting, training and arming Eritrean opposition groups.

“It is Ethiopia which has been pursuing an agenda of incessant hostility,” Eritrea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.

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Relations between the neighbouring countries improved in 2018 after Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki signed a peace declaration.

The agreement ended two decades of hostility following the 1998–2000 border war and marked a major improvement in relations between the two countries.

However, tensions returned during Ethiopia’s 2020–2022 Tigray war, when Eritrean forces fought alongside Ethiopian government troops.

Eritrea did not participate in the 2022 Pretoria peace agreement that brought the Tigray conflict to an end.

As a result, the latest diplomatic rupture has added another layer of tension between the two countries, with both governments accusing each other of actions they say threaten regional security.

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Eritrea’s president and Ethiopia’s prime minister arrive for an inauguration ceremony marking the reopening of the Eritrean embassy in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. PHOTO/ Reuters