News in Brief The 38th Ordinary Session of the African Union Executive Council has been successfully held virtually from 3-4 February 2021 UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi’s visit to Eritrean Refugee Camps in Ethiopia United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Safety and Security Gilles Michaud’s visit to Tigray Press Release of FDRE Attorney General on the Investigation into TPLF’s attack against the Northern Command of the National Defense Force and Related Grave Criminal Offences Meet Professor Hirut Woldemariam Ethiopia’s candidate for AU Commissioner of Education, Science, Technology & Innovation  Africa and the African Union The 38th Ordinary Session of the…

News in Brief President Shale-work visits Tanzania and DRC Embassy in Geneva refutes statement of UNSRSG on sexual violence in Tigray Misrepresentation of the Government of Ethiopia (Letter to the The Economist) Ethiopia addresses concerns of international community in Virtual meeting facilitated by Atlantic Council Africa and the African Union The African Union (AU) on Tuesday raised concern with the rising tensions at the common border between Kenya and Somalia, which saw sporadic violence in Bula-Hawo. It called for dialogue to deescalate tension. The fighting arose between Somalia National Forces and regional Jubbaland fighters, which Somalia claims have been trained…

News in Brief Ambassador Dina Mufti’s briefing on Ethiopia-Sudan border issue, Sudan’s stance on the GERD negotiation & claims of third party involvement during operation in Tigray Facts on the status of recent developments regarding Ethiopia-Sudan Border A delegation led by Minister of Agriculture, Oumer Hussien visits Djibouti Restraining Sensationalism by Billene Seyoum Africa and the African Union The 41st Ordinary Session of the Permanent Representatives’ Committee (PRC) kicked off on Wednesday (20 January 2021), in the context of the prevailing COVID-19 Pandemic, ahead of the 34th Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union (AU) scheduled…

News in Brief Ethiopia believes border issues with Sudan can be resolved via existing bilateral agreements and joint boundary mechanisms Chief of Ethiopian National Defense Forces Awarded Djibouti’s Military Medal Africa and the African Union The AU Mission in Somalia in conjunction with the Federal Electoral Implementation Team (FEIT) on Saturday (January 09) held a meeting with representatives of Civil Society Organizations (CSO) to explore ways of deepening the role of CSOs in ensuring peaceful elections, and in countering hate speech and incitement to violence during the upcoming elections. Organized by FEIT and the political unit of the African Union…

News in Brief Finding an Amicable solution for the Ethiopia-Sudan boundary The latest developments on the GERD talks The start of trading under The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) The Geneva Press Club and Ethiopians in Geneva co-organized Press Conference on current situations in Tigray Africa and the African Union German diplomat Volker Perthes has become the new head of the United Nations Integrated Transition Assistance Mission in Sudan (UNITAMS), the United Nations and the Sudanese government said. U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres informed the Security Council about the appointment in a letter to the 15-member council on Wednesday, according…

News in Brief The law enforcement operation in Tigray and the media: Lessons learnt By Demeke Mekonnen (FDRE Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs) Let’s give dialogue a chance to settle the dust in Ethiopia-Sudan boundary issue The end of UNAMID’s mandate in Darfur and Reflections on Ethiopia`s Role With US Troops Out, Somalia Security Remains a Big Concern Africa and the African Union Yesterday, 31 December 2020, marked the end of the mandate of the United Nations-African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID). It was formally established through the adoption of resolution 1769 by the United Nations Security…

News in Brief Operations to Restore Law and Order in Ethiopia’s Tigray Region: How Did We Get Here? – By Abiy Ahmed Opening Remarks of Demeke Mekonnen, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of the FDRE At Ethiopia-Sudan High Level Political Committee Meeting IGAD Concludes 38th Extraordinary Assembly of Heads of State and Government Africa and the African Union The 38th Extraordinary Assembly of IGAD Heads of State and Government was concluded on Sunday (December 27) in Djibouti. The assembly deliberated current developments in the IGAD region, the latest issues on COVID19 with that of corresponding responses, including other pivotal…

News in Brief Ethiopia expresses commitment to the global fight against climate change Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok of Sudan visits Ethiopia Africa and the African Union On Monday (December 14) Amira Elfadil Mohamed Elfadil, Commissioner for Social Affairs and Ambassador Yuxi Liu, Head of the Mission of the People’s Republic of China to Ethiopia, on behalf of the African Union Commission and the Government of China attended the ground breaking and unveiling ceremony for the China aided Project of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) Headquarters building. The event took place in the presence of representatives…

News in Brief Humanitarian Assistance in Tigray Region Ethiopia, Kenya reiterate commitment to Cross-border Infrastructure Projects AU holds 13th & 14th Extraordinary Assembly Sessions Updates on the humanitarian situation in Tigray Africa and the African Union The 13th and 14th Extraordinary Sessions of the Assembly of the African Union took place virtually on 5 and 6 December 2020 respectively. The 13th Extraordinary Session considered issues relating to the African Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and passed decisions and a declaration providing for, among others, the start of actual trading on the basis of the Agreement on 1 January 2021. This was…

News in Brief On the humanitarian Response in the Tigray Region Ethiopia reaffirmed commitment to the global response to the covid-19 pandemic President Sahle-Work Zewde visits Djibouti Africa and the African Union The 21st Extraordinary Session of the Executive Council of the African Union that was held virtually on Wednesday (December 02). The meeting aimed to discuss the launch of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and the status of the implementations of the theme of the Year of the African Union for 2020, ‘Silencing the Guns’. Demeke Mekonnen, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Ethiopia, has participated…