Published on : 31/07/2022 – 02:30
Mike Hammer, the new American special envoy for the Horn of Africa, has been in Ethiopia since Friday. Purpose of this trip, according to the United States Embassy in Addis Ababa: ” support efforts towards a lasting peace between the government and the rebel authorities in the Tigray region ».
Yesterday, following a meeting with Demeke Mekonnen, Ethiopia’s deputy prime minister and foreign minister, the US diplomat called for progress in the peace talks.
On its Twitter account, the United States Embassy in Addis Ababa explains that Mike Hammer and Demeke Mekonnen discussed ” the need for continued progress to ensure the unimpeded delivery of humanitarian assistance, human rights accountability and political talks to end the conflict and achieve lasting peace ».
The government and the Tigrayan rebels have repeated in recent weeks that they are willing to open peace negotiations. But they disagree on the identity of the mediator. The federal authorities are pushing for talks sponsored by the African Union, which the rebel authorities do not want to hear regarding. Addis Ababa also wants these discussions to begin “ without precondition while the Tigrayan rebels demand, before any negotiation, the restoration of essential services such as electricity or telecommunications, of which they have been deprived for a year. Mike Hammer must now meet with leaders of political parties and civil society.
Yesterday, the American diplomat spoke with members of the International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia. According to the US Embassy in Addis Ababa, he wanted to know more regarding the discussions this week between the said Commission and the government regarding the investigations into human rights violations.