Omanghana
The United States has removed sanctions imposed on Eritrea’s military, ruling party and several individuals and businesses over their alleged roles in the conflict in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region.
The measures were introduced in 2021 during the administration of former President Joe Biden amid humanitarian and human rights concerns surrounding the war. Under the latest decision, the Trump administration allowed the sanctions framework to expire and removed the Eritrean Defense Forces, the ruling People’s Front for Democracy and Justice and other designated entities from the US blacklist.
The delisting also covers the Red Sea Trading Corporation, which is linked to the ruling party, and Hagos Ghebrehiwet, a senior Eritrean financial official. In total, the action affected six individuals, two companies, the military and Eritrea’s sole governing party.
Eritrean troops fought alongside Ethiopian federal forces against the Tigray People’s Liberation Front after the conflict began in November 2020. The war, which formally ended with a peace agreement in November 2022, displaced millions of people and caused widespread destruction across Tigray and neighboring regions. Estimates of the number of people killed vary widely, with some assessments placing the toll in the hundreds of thousands.
Eritrea welcomed Washington’s decision. Information Minister Yemane Gebremeskel described the original restrictions as unwarranted and economically damaging, while praising the current US administration for taking what he called remedial action.
The policy change comes as Eritrea’s strategic importance is growing because of its location along the Red Sea. The country has more than 1,000 kilometers of coastline, while its southern port of Assab lies close to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a crucial passage connecting the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden.
Escalating insecurity in Yemen and threats to commercial vessels have increased international attention on the waterway. Analysts say improved relations with Asmara could strengthen Washington’s ability to work with regional partners on maritime security and freedom of navigation, although US authorities have not presented the delisting solely as a military arrangement.
The move places the United States among several powers seeking deeper political, commercial and security relationships around the Red Sea. Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Turkey, Israel and the United Arab Emirates have all expanded their engagement in the region, where ports and military facilities have become increasingly important to international trade and defense planning.
Human Rights Watch previously warned against easing sanctions without clear accountability measures for alleged abuses committed in Eritrea and during the Tigray conflict. The organization argued that removing the restrictions without human rights benchmarks could weaken efforts to hold those responsible for serious violations accountable.
Eritrea has been governed by President Isaias Afwerki since independence in 1993. Rights organizations continue to raise concerns about indefinite national service, restrictions on independent media and civil society, arbitrary detention and the absence of national elections.
The lifting of the sanctions could open the way for closer engagement between Washington and Asmara. However, it also intensifies debate over whether the United States is balancing accountability for alleged wartime abuses against its expanding security interests along one of the world’s most important maritime corridors.
Source: Omanghana
