Africa-Press-Ethiopia<\/p>\n
ADDIS ABABA – Calling Ethiopia \u201cthe critical actor in Horn of Africa stability,\u201d outgoing U.S. Ambassador to Ethiopia Michael Raynor voiced confidence in a strengthened bilateral relationship but warned that violence \u2013 especially in the northern Tigray region \u2013 threatens the country\u2019s progress.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe remain concerned about ethnic violence around the country and the threat it poses to achieving the country\u2019s potential,\u201d Raynor said of Ethiopia, speaking at a press conference Monday in Addis Ababa, the capital.<\/p>\n
It was Raynor\u2019s final news briefing as ambassador, a post he has held since September 2017. He has focused on Africa for many of his 30-plus years as a diplomat.<\/p>\n
Rivalries among some of Ethiopia\u2019s 80 ethnic groups have spawned deadly violence, including the Jan. 12 killings of more than 80 civilians in Metekel, a town in the western Benishangul-Gumaz region, the Associated Press reported, citing information from the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission.<\/p>\n
Raynor said the U.S. government also is \u201cparticularly alarmed by the ongoing situation in Tigray,\u201d where Ethiopian federal forces launched a military operation in early November to put down a rebellion by regional forces of the Tigray People\u2019s Liberation Front. Ethiopia\u2019s government said that it had regained control of the region by late November, but reports of extrajudicial killings and other sporadic violence have continued to filter out.<\/p>\n
Since the conflict\u2019s outbreak, more than 58,000 have fled northern Ethiopia for neighboring Tigray, the International Organization for Migration reported Monday. While thousands are believed to have been killed and many more internally displaced, numbers are difficult to verify because of limited communications with, and access to, Tigray. The United Nations estimates that roughly 4.5 million people in Tigray desperately need food, medicine and other basics, and U.N. agencies have criticized Ethiopian authorities for blocking humanitarian aid.<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter almost three months, we’re still not seeing enough humanitarian assistance reach the most vulnerable areas,\u201d Raynor told journalists. \u201cMuch more needs to be done, and urgently, to ensure humanitarian organizations \u2013 both Ethiopian and international \u2013 have full and secure access to the region to provide lifesaving support to the millions of people who are suffering.\u201d<\/p>\n
The U.N\u2019s special representative on sexual violence, Pramila Patten, last week released a statement that she was \u201cgreatly concerned by serious allegations of sexual violence\u201d in the region.<\/p>\n
Raynor acknowledged that concern, saying the U.S. government continues \u201cto call on all parties to cease any hostilities, ensure the protection of all civilians in Tigray, including refugees and humanitarian workers, and to uphold international human rights and humanitarian law.\u201d<\/p>\n
He also brought up the U.S. assessment that soldiers from Eritrea were helping Ethiopian federal forces in Tigray, despite Ethiopian authorities\u2019 denials.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe continue to be troubled by the activities of Eritrean actors in the Tigray region,\u201d Raynor said, \u201cand we continue to call for an immediate halt to \u2014 and independent investigations of \u2014 all credible reports of atrocities. sexual violence, human rights violations of all kinds in Tigray and other places.\u201d<\/p>\n
Improved bilateral relations<\/p>\n
Raynor said that when Abiy Ahmed became prime minister in April 2018, replacing Hailemariam Desalegn after 23 years and introducing an array of reforms, \u201cthere was a fundamental reset, a realignment of core values fully in sync with U.S. core values, both in terms of economic opportunity and job creation and in terms of political space and respect for rights. So that formed a strong basis for us to expand our engagement.\u201d<\/p>\n
During his tenure as ambassador, Raynor said, the U.S. government \u201cbrought well over $3 billion\u201d to support Ethiopia\u2019s governance, development and humanitarian priorities. These range from enhancing the country\u2019s food security and health systems to reforming judicial activities and updating economic policies to encourage private investment.<\/p>\n
Raynor also observed that Ethiopia\u2019s ability \u201cto focus on our areas of partnership has been strained by some degree due to the rate of ethnic tensions and Ethiopian-on-Ethiopian violence and certainly the current Tigray crisis. But by and large I feel very optimistic about the trajectory we have been on and that my successor will be able to build upon.\u201d<\/p>\n
A successor has not yet been named.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a pivotal time for Ethiopia,\u201d Raynor said. \u201cWhat Ethiopia does in the coming months \u2014 particularly in promoting democracy, organizing free and fair credible elections this year, protecting basic human rights including freedom of the press and freedom of expression, resolving conflict and addressing ethnic tension, maintaining regional harmony and promoting economic opportunity \u2014 will impact this country’s prospects for generations to come.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Africa-Press-Ethiopia ADDIS ABABA – Calling Ethiopia \u201cthe critical actor in Horn of Africa stability,\u201d outgoing U.S. Ambassador to Ethiopia Michael Raynor voiced confidence in a strengthened bilateral relationship but warned that violence \u2013 especially in the northern Tigray region \u2013 threatens the country\u2019s progress. \u201cWe remain concerned about ethnic violence around the country and the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":2161,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,12],"tags":[241],"class_list":["post-2160","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-policy","tag-africa-press-ethiopia"],"yoast_head":"\n