Eritrean police and militia presence criticised

Ethiopia has warned that it considers the a recent protocol agreement signed between the United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) and the Eritrean government a violation of the peace agreement. The protocol between UNMEE and Eritrea provided for the return of militia and police to the disputed area, which “constituted a potentially dangerous measure executed in contradiction of the Algiers agreement”, the pro-Ethiopian government Walta Information Centre said on 21 April. The Ethiopia-UNMEE Coordination Bureau also said that Eritrean army units remained in the buffer zone at the border “disguised as militia”, which would threaten the peace process “no matter what Ethiopia might do to avoid it”. It accused the Eritrean government of attempting to infiltrate intelligence and security elements into the area, using the guise of the police and militia.

According to the Coordination Bureau, the proposed return of Eritrean police and militia to the Temporary Security Zone (TSZ) had been a major issue of discussion at Military Coordination Commission meetings between the two parties, and the Ethiopian delegation had continually expressed concern.
Ethiopia said the Eritrean police and militia returning to the TSZ “should strictly maintain the composition, command structure and standing they had before the conflict”. Ethiopia detailed a number of complaints about the protocol agreement, including the fact the police in the TSZ could be equipped with armoured personnel carriers (APCs).