Recall of envoys could hurt aid

The decision by the 15-member European Union (EU) in Luxembourg on Monday to recall all its ambassadors from Eritrea could jeopardise the country's requests for aid. The nature of future relations between the EU and Eritrea would be indicated by the length of time the ambassadors stayed in Europe, the BBC reported on Tuesday.

The Eritrean Government is yet to make an official response to the recall of the ambassadors "for consultations". The BBC quoted diplomatic sources as saying that all EU envoys were expected to have left Asmara, the Eritrean capital, by the weekend.

"Any concerted hard line from EU countries could lead to a freezing of almost all development projects in Eritrea, though it is unlikely that humanitarian assistance will end," the BBC commented.

Italy's ambassador in Asmara, Antonio Bandini, who was also head of the EU delegation there, was expelled on 1 October, after expressing concern over the imprisonment by the Eritrean government of 11 opposition figures, and over what he called "the muzzling of the press" in the country - a reference to the government's earlier closure of the whole of the country's private press.

The government said his actions were "not compatible with his diplomatic functions" and told him to leave. Italy responded by expelling Eritrea's ambassador, Tseggai Mogos, on 2 October.

Italy is Eritrea's second-largest donor. The two countries were due to hold talks later this month on a three-year development plan under which Italy was expected to make up shortfalls in Eritrea's requests for hundreds of millions of dollars needed to recover from its recent war with Ethiopia, including US $197 million towards a demobilisation programme.