UN confirms special envoy to be appointed

A special envoy is to be appointed to help “intensify” efforts to resolve the stalled peace process between Ethiopia and Eritrea, the United Nations said on Friday.

George Somerwill, deputy spokesman for the UN Mission in Eritrea and Ethiopia (UNMEE), said the envoy would add weight to ongoing diplomatic moves to keep the three-year-old peace deal on track.

“The appointment of a special envoy is an intensification of the UN and international community’s efforts to bring the Algiers [peace] Agreement to a satisfactory conclusion,” he told IRIN.

Somerwill declined to comment on who may be appointed and when.

Speculation, both in the Ethiopian media and abroad, is mounting that former Canadian foreign minister Dr Lloyd Axworthy will be appointed to the role.

Axworthy, a former nominee for the Nobel Peace Prize, is best known for his role in pushing through a global treaty to ban anti-personnel landmines.

Demarcation of the contested border between Ethiopia and Eritrea – where a bloody two-year war was fought – has stalled amid wrangling over the contested border town Badme.

Ethiopia wants the United Nations to consider an “alternative mechanism” to resolve the controversy and has called for dialogue with Eritrea. Asmara has rejected dialogue until demarcation of the 1,000 km is complete.

Somerwill also told journalists at a weekly press briefing on Thursday that the situation was tense but “militarily stable”.

“There have been no significant changes in troop locations reported over the past week,” he told a video-linked press briefing between Asmara and Addis Ababa.