Zmeselo wrote: ↑18 Aug 2025, 21:01
The Horn of Africa stands at a crossroads. On one side, Ethiopia’s fragmentation threatens to drag the region deeper into chaos. On the other, Eritrea’s resilience offers a path toward stability and renewal. The question is no longer whether to engage Eritrea—but how quickly the world adapts to its new centrality in regional politics.
Resilience vs Reliance: Eritrea’s Strategic Rise as Ethiopia Falters
@ShidaMedia
Aug 18, 2025
The Horn of Africa is a region of shifting tides. Ethiopia, long designated by the United States as the anchor state of the region, is now disintegrating before our eyes; torn apart by reckless leadership, ethnic conflict, and economic freefall. Once celebrated as a reformer, Ethiopia’s leader has proven superficial, short-sighted, and dangerously self-serving, accelerating the collapse of the very state he was entrusted to preserve.
While Ethiopia edges toward collapse, Eritrea’s strategic positioning has propelled it to the forefront of the region’s political, military, and diplomatic arena. Despite enduring decades of sanctions and isolation—imposed by Western powers in response to its refusal to surrender sovereignty or allow external control over its resources—Eritrea charted its own independent course. By resisting subjugation and preserving autonomy, the country has transformed adversity into resilience and strength.
Nowhere is this more visible than in the Sudan. While the UAE, using Ethiopia as a willing conduit, funneled weapons to the RSF, Eritrea stood firmly with the Sudanese government. Its support proved decisive: Khartoum has returned to government control, and the RSF is being driven out of Darfur and other strongholds. Eritrea has demonstrated that sovereignty can be defended against external interference.
Somalia, tells a similar story. Where others dismissed it as a failed state, Eritrea stepped in with training, strategy, and support to help rebuild a national army. This quiet partnership is enabling Mogadishu to reassert its authority, counter extremist groups, and lay the foundations of a viable and stable state.
The Red Sea, adds yet another dimension. Eritrea’s ports—Assab and Massawa—sit on one of the world’s most vital trade arteries, carrying nearly 10% of global commerce. While Ethiopia remains landlocked and fragile, Eritrea commands a maritime advantage that makes it indispensable to global powers. No serious strategy in the Horn of Africa, the Red Sea, or the wider Middle East can ignore Eritrea any longer.
Even the West, once blinded by hostility, is beginning to recalibrate. Ethiopia’s collapse has exposed the folly of backing short-sighted leaders, at the expense of regional stability. Eritrea, once isolated, is now courted. The world is finally recognizing what Eritreans have always known: that sovereignty, stability, and strategic clarity matter more than empty promises of reform.
The Horn of Africa stands at a crossroads. On one side, Ethiopia’s fragmentation threatens to drag the region deeper into chaos. On the other, Eritrea’s resilience offers a path toward stability and renewal. The question is no longer whether to engage Eritrea—but how quickly the world adapts to its new centrality in regional politics.