Why did Abiy Ahmed meet with Burhan's deputy in Djibouti?

SadaNews - It seems that the Ethiopian government found itself compelled to ease the disagreement with Sudan, following strict American threats that analysts say stem from deep concern about the future of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.

The Sudanese army accused Ethiopia of launching drone attacks on Khartoum Airport last Monday, which Addis Ababa denied, accusing Khartoum of supporting fighters from the Tigray Liberation Front and violating Ethiopia's territorial integrity.

These accusations are the latest in a long series of accusations between the two sides, with the Sudanese army continuously accusing Abiy Ahmed’s government of supporting the Rapid Support Forces that have been fighting against it for over three years, while Ethiopians have accused the Sudanese Sovereignty Council of supporting hostile groups to their country.

However, Djiboutian President Ismail Omar held a closed session yesterday, Saturday, which brought together Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and Deputy Chairman of the Sudanese Sovereignty Council, Malik Agar. A source told Al Jazeera that the two sides agreed during the meeting to work towards containing their differences.

Ethiopian Retreat

This meeting could be a precursor to resolving the disputes between the two countries if Abiy Ahmed stops exporting his internal problems to Sudan, according to political analyst Ammar Awad, in an interview with Al Jazeera Mubasher.

But Yassin Ahmed, head of the Ethiopian Institute for Popular Diplomacy, responded by saying that there are other parties, including Egypt and Eritrea, that are trying to exploit Sudan to undermine Ethiopian interests, believing that the Djibouti meeting may indicate a move towards dismantling the disagreement.

He stated that the whole world now knows that the solution to the Sudanese crisis has largely become internal, because the two sides in the conflict possess weapons and are obstinate in continuing the war.

American Warning

As for researcher in international and African affairs Ibrahim Idris, he attributes Abiy Ahmed's meeting with Malik Agar in Djibouti to Ethiopia's desire to resolve its disagreement with Sudan through dialogue after the United States sent a direct and clear message to Addis Ababa not to overstep its boundaries with neighboring countries.

The United States and the European Union have deep concerns that the crisis in the Hormuz Strait could extend to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which may bring all countries to the Horn of Africa region, as Idris says.

Due to these fears, Idris says that the United States asked Addis Ababa to stop threatening Eritrea and Somalia with obtaining a seaport, whether peacefully or by war, as came from senior Ethiopian officials earlier.

Moreover, Washington - according to Idris - has decided to correct its relations with the Eritrean government and ease the sanctions imposed on it because it has started to play an important role at this time, which prompted Addis Ababa to call on the Djiboutian president to attempt to resolve the disagreement with Sudan through dialogue, apparently.

It is true that Ethiopians are disturbed by the American message of which Idris says no one knows the details, but they have no choice but to seek to alleviate these tensions, as they have become surrounded by problems on all sides due to Abiy Ahmed's policies.

For everything agreed upon between Abiy Ahmed and the Tigray Liberation Front "has failed miserably, which has led the Addis Ababa government to stop," according to Idris, who said, "Abiy Ahmed needs to return to his initial policies that focus on promoting peace, which no longer exist today."

As the situation in Sudan has reached a boiling point that threatens to expand the dangers of the conflict regionally and perhaps internationally through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the Ethiopian-Sudanese meeting in Djibouti, according to the same speaker, appears to be "an Ethiopian attempt to contain the situation after Khartoum provided evidence of drones coming from Ethiopian territory.

In February, Reuters reported that Ethiopia is hosting a camp to train thousands of fighters for the benefit of the Rapid Support Forces and that it has developed the nearby Asosa Airport for use in drone operations.

Last week, Reuters quoted local residents as saying that recent strikes targeted military objectives and civilian areas in Khartoum, which has begun to witness the return of citizens and ministries and international agencies since the army regained control over it in March 2025.

The attacks targeted Khartoum International Airport, which witnessed some of the first battles between the army and the Rapid Support Forces in April 2023. The shelling came a week after the airport received its first international flight in three years.

Sudanese army spokesman Brigadier General Asim Awad Abdel Wahab stated that the government has evidence that the attacks targeted several states and that they originated from Ethiopia's Bahir Dar Airport.

Source: Al Jazeera