Diplomacy
Ethiopia’s Tigray war: Assessing UAE and Saudi Arabia roles
Al Jazeera · 5 hours ago · Read the Full Story on Al Jazeera
AI SUMMARY
As renewed fighting in Tigray threatens regional stability, the differing diplomatic positions and strategic interests of the UAE and Saudi Arabia are coming under scrutiny.
- Renewed fighting in Ethiopia’s Tigray region threatens to unravel the November 2022 Pretoria peace agreement.
- On September 25, the UAE condemned TPLF attacks against federal forces, the seizure of airports, and escalation in Afar and Amhara.
- UAE Minister of State Sheikh Shakhboot bin Nahyan Al Nahyan expressed solidarity with Ethiopia’s government and called for an end to hostilities and adherence to the Pretoria Agreement.
- The UAE operates commercial interests in the region, including DP World managing the Berbera port in Somaliland.
- Saudi Arabia has not publicly announced its position on the latest fighting in Tigray.
- Riyadh previously undertook diplomatic efforts in 2025 to mediate between Ethiopia and Eritrea, though past efforts reportedly failed to address Ethiopia's interest in the port of Assab.
- Ethiopian army chief Field Marshal Birhanu Jula accused Egypt and Sudan of supporting armed groups including the TPLF.
- Egypt’s Foreign Ministry rejected accusations of supporting the TPLF while affirming commitment to state sovereignty.
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