Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed told parliament on Monday that his landlocked country will secure an outlet to the Red Sea, delivering the pledge shortly after taking the oath for a new five-year term and a day after four neighboring governments said the sea’s governance belongs to the states along its shores.
Abiy said Ethiopia would work, “based on the principle of give and take,” to secure that outlet. He described access to maritime routes and ports as vital to Ethiopia’s economic ambitions, historical standing and growing population, according to accounts of the speech. The remarks repeat a position he has held for years. In October 2025, he told lawmakers that no cabinet, parliament or public process ever decided to strip Ethiopia of sea access, and he asked international partners to support peaceful mediation.
Ethiopia lost direct access to the Red Sea in 1993, when Eritrea, formerly a region of Ethiopia, became independent. Abiy took office as prime minister in 2018.
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Speech coverage from Ethiopian outlets says he also pledged constitutional amendments based on recommendations of the National Dialogue Commission, tougher action against corruption and completion of the country’s macroeconomic overhaul. He asked the new House of Peoples’ Representatives to scrutinize and guide the executive.
The oath came as Ethiopia’s northern region of Tigray is again a war zone. The Tigray People’s Liberation Front and federal forces began fighting on Sept. 23, reviving fears of a repeat of the 2020-2022 war, which ended with a fragile peace deal in 2022. The TPLF is part of a seven-group armed alliance fighting the government. Federal forces and the allied Tigray Peace Force militia entered the regional capital, Mekelle, on Saturday, and the TPLF confirmed it had withdrawn, saying its administration would operate temporarily from another location. A local journalist said communications in Mekelle were restored on Sunday for the first time in more than a week.
Addis Ababa accuses Eritrea of directly backing the alliance, and accuses Egypt and Sudan of supporting it as well. All three countries deny the charge. Eritrea, which fought alongside Ethiopia’s army in the 2020-2022 war, has severed diplomatic ties with Ethiopia over the accusations. Eritrea, for its part, accuses Ethiopia of planning to seize a coastline through its territory. A separate dispute over Ethiopia’s Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam on the Nile has strained relations with Egypt and Sudan, which depend on the river for water. An Egyptian diplomat was declared persona non grata, according to reporting compiled by ATN, and the United Nations and the African Union have expressed concern and called for a peaceful resolution.
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On Sunday, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi hosted Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki, Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and Sudanese army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan in New Alamein, on the sidelines of an African Business Forum. Before the talks, Sisi said cross-border challenges call for “dialogue, not confrontation.” The four leaders issued a joint declaration calling for political and peaceful solutions to regional conflicts, including Sudan’s civil war and the fighting in Ethiopia. They said governance of the Red Sea is the exclusive responsibility of its coastal states and rejected actions that could affect Egypt’s and Sudan’s use of Nile waters. The declaration appeared to push back against several Ethiopian policies of recent years, ATN understands from accounts of the meeting.
Ethiopia’s Foreign Ministry replied on Monday. It said any discussion of the Red Sea must account for the country’s “legitimate interests and enduring connection” to the body of water, and that Ethiopia remains committed to dialogue and peaceful regional engagement while defending its sovereignty.
Somalia’s position is less fixed. Mohamud attended the Egypt summit, then congratulated Abiy on his re-election in a post on X, writing that he looks forward “to working closely together to strengthen Somalia-Ethiopia relations.” Mohamud has said publicly that Somalia does not object to Ethiopia reaching the Red Sea through Somali territory, though he said the two countries would have to negotiate officially.
Other leaders also sent messages. Burundi’s president, Evariste Ndayishimiye, wished Abiy “every success during his renewed mandate,” and Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, the chairperson of the African Union Commission, sent congratulations.
