Ethiopian redeployment

Re-deployment of Ethiopian troops in the disputed border region is moving ahead of schedule, an official from the United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) said on Wednesday. UNMEE spokesperson Angela Walker, based in Addis Ababa, told IRIN that Ethiopian troops were moving "ahead of schedule" from the Western and Central Zone, but that troops in the Eastern Zone were "sticking to the time line". Ethiopian troops began redeployment on 12 February and are due to complete the move by 26 February. Eritrean troops began on 17 February, and are expected to finish redeployment on 3 March, Walker said.

"There is so much movement of men and equipment that some gridlock on the roads has been reported", Walker said. She said that UNMEE cooperation with the Ethiopian military was "very good". After redeployment, UNMEE monitors would have to verify that conditions had been properly met. After verification, the Eritrean government would begin to restore its civil administration in preparation for the return of internally displaced people (IDPs), Walker told IRIN.