Military meeting discusses buffer zone

At the eighth meeting of the Military Coordination Commission (MCC) in Nairobi, Kenya, both Ethiopia and Eritrea expressed dissatisfaction about aspects of the buffer zone created by UN peacekeepers, known as the Temporary Security Zone. A statement released by the UN Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) said despite the objections over the zone, both sides had “emphasised the importance of reaching formal agreement on it”. Other issues discussed by the two sides included the safe return of internally displaced people to their places of origin, and reducing tensions on the southern boundary of the buffer zone. The UNMEE statement said the chairman, UNMEE Force Commander Maj-Gen Patrick Cammaert, had emphasised the need for face-to-face contact at the local level - which at present has been limited to the military coordination meetings only.

Cammaert informed the MCC that the UN Security Council was scheduled to review UNMEE’s mandate on 15 September. He said progress had been made regarding cooperation for the recovery, identification and repatriation of unburied remains in areas controlled by either party. In this regard, the Ethiopian and Eritrean delegations agreed on a draft document on procedures prepared by UNMEE, based on discussions at earlier MCC meetings, the statement said. Ethiopia’s delegation was led by Maj-Gen Alemshet Degife, and Eritrea’s delegation was led by Brig-Gen Abrahaley Kifle.