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US Delegation, Top Ethiopian Officials Discuss Tigray Conflict

VOA Horn of Africa Service

   A U.S. delegation has met with top officials in Addis Ababa to convey
   President Joe Biden's "grave concerns" about the ongoing conflict in
   Ethiopia's Tigray region.

   The delegation led by U.S. Senator Chris Coons arrived in Ethiopia
   Saturday to meet with Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and express the
   president's "grave concerns about the humanitarian crisis and human
   rights abuses in the Tigray region and the risk of broader instability
   in the Horn of Africa," according to [1]U.S. National Security Advisor
   Jake Sullivan.

   Present during the closed-door meeting were Ethiopian Deputy Prime
   Minister and Foreign Minister Demeke Mekonnen and the spokesperson for
   Ethiopia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Dina Mufti.

   There was no immediate comment on the talks from Senator Coons, a
   Democrat from Biden's home state of Delaware, and no word on when the
   delegation will meet with Prime Minister Abiy.

   Since the start of the conflict between the federal government and the
   Tigray regional forces in November, hundreds of thousands have been
   displaced within Ethiopia or sought refuge in neighboring Sudan.

   A recent U.S. government report concluded the Ethiopian government is
   conducting "a systematic campaign of ethnic cleansing" in Tigray. It
   said Ethiopian forces and allied militia fighters from the neighboring
   Amhara region, who participated in the Tigray conflict in support of
   Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, are "deliberately and efficiently rendering
   Western Tigray ethnically homogeneous through the organized use of
   force and intimidation."

   The U.S has called for an independent investigation into alleged war
   crimes.

   Ethiopian officials put a positive spin on the talks with the Coons
   delegation.

   Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Dina Mufi called the discussion with
   Coons "constructive."

   "The Ethiopian government is in the process of explaining its position
   so the friendly United States government would better understand it and
   study the issue," he said, speaking to reporters on Ethiopia's
   state-owned media, Ethiopian Broadcasting Corporation.

   Dina added, "there is willingness on Ethiopia's side to work together
   and make adjustments."

   At the same time, he said, "in the process of the law enforcement
   operation in Tigray, it is not an appropriate direction for them [the
   U.S.] to take when considering a local militia [Amhara militia] as a
   foreign force," Dina said. "Domestic matters are Ethiopian matters and
   sovereignty matters," he added.

   Deputy Prime Minister Demeke briefed the delegation "to shed light on
   the confusions that the U.S. Government previously had about the
   military operation in the region," the [2]government media reported.
   The Fana Broadcasting Corporate report stopped short of explaining what
   the confusion is.

   Ambassador Dina told local reporters that other topics were discussed
   beyond the conflict in the Tigray region during the meeting with the
   delegation.

   Ethiopian authorities spoke about tensions with Sudan, which are
   running high to disputes over the border and Ethiopia's hydropower
   project, the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, he said.

   This story originated in Horn of Africa's Amharic service with
   contribution from Solomon Abate and Eskinder Frew.

References

   1. https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/03/18/statement-by-national-security-advisor-jake-sullivan-on-senator-christopher-coons-d-de-travel-to-ethiopia/
   2. https://www.fanabc.com/english/deputy-premier-demeke-briefs-us-delegation-led-by-chris-coons-on-latest-developments-in-ethiopia/