It’s more than Ethiopian Airlines flying to neighboring Eritrea, it’s another confirmation of peace between Ethiopia and Eritrea. It’s peace through tourism or aviation.
Today Ethiopian Airlines announced it landed in Asmara, neighboring Eritrea, in VVIP flight led by H.E. Dr. Abiy Ahmed, Prime Minister of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia.
While we celebrate this beautiful day in history, we wish the best of sustainable peace, friendship and prosperity to both the Eritrean and Ethiopian peoples.
We are looking forward not only to connect Eritrea with Ethiopia but also to connect Eritrea with more than 114 international destinations in 5 continents with modern airplane.
The utterly inconsequential-looking Ethiopian border town of Badme is where war broke out in 1998 between Ethiopia and Eritrea, lasting two years and devastating both countries.
Ever since the the town has remained, in spite of its ramshackle, unassuming appearance, an iconic symbol for both countries, primarily because despite the internationally brokered Algiers Peace Accord that followed the 2000 ceasefire, and led to a ruling that Badme return to Eritrea, Ethiopia defiantly stayed put in the town.
Hence Badme festered as a source of rancour during years that turned into decades, with the Ethiopian and Eritrean governments coming to loathe each other, while all along the border the countries remained at loggerheads, each military eyeing the other warily.
But all of a sudden at the start of June, Ethiopia announced its readiness to fully comply and implement the Algiers Peace Accord, one of a number of unprecedented reformist actions this year, and which show no sign of slowing down since the April election of a new prime minister who has pledged to take Ethiopia in a new and more democratic and hopeful direction.
The Ethiopian government also announced it would accept the outcome of a 2002 border commission ruling, which awarded disputed territories collectively known as the Yirga Triangle, at the tip of which sits Badme, to Eritrea.
yahoo
