UNMEE accused of "leaking stories"

The Ethiopian government has accused the UN Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) of "leaking stories" to the media, saying this could undermine confidence in the peacekeeping mission.

The row was sparked after UNMEE gave details of a serious confrontation between armed Ethiopian militia and Indian peacekeepers. UNMEE told how it had lodged an official protest after armed Ethiopian militia illegally entered the Temporary Security Zone (TSZ) and threatened peacekeepers.

Tensions between UNMEE and the Ethiopian government have been high and dogged by dispute since an independent Boundary Commission issued a ruling on the border with Eritrea in April. The two countries had fought at bitter two-year war, sparked by a border dispute in 1998.

An Ethiopian foreign ministry statement said that details of the incidents earlier this month provided by UNMEE to journalists had been “distorted, selective half truths”.

“One would have thought that UNMEE, as the custodian of peace between Ethiopia and Eritrea, for now would be discreet in its behaviour and that it would, as much as possible, shun controversy with the parties, in public,” the statement said.

It said by “cozying up” to journalists, UNMEE had undermined its peacekeeping role and was acting like “politicians running for office”.

“The government of Ethiopia is disappointed over these developments because it has always been Ethiopia's desire to see UNMEE becoming an effective and neutral partner for peace,” the statement added.