The United States and Kenya lobbied Wednesday to impose a ceasefire in Ethiopia, keeping hopes of a return to negotiations between the government and rebels in the north of the country.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, on a three-country tour of Africa that will take him to Nigeria and Senegal, also warned of a global decline in democracy by encouraging his close ally, Kenya , to guarantee free elections next year.
The senior US diplomat spoke for an hour and a half with Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta in a meeting initially scheduled for 10 minutes.
“We believe in Ethiopia’s potential to find a solution to this crisis. We believe that a ceasefire is possible,” Kenyan Foreign Minister Raychelle Omamo said at a press conference joint with A. Blinken.
The latter called for “concrete measures for peace” and a resumption of humanitarian aid, with hundreds of thousands of people living in conditions bordering on famine as the war between the Abiy government and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Tigray (TPLF) are entering their second year.
“I reiterate our call on all parties to urgently and seriously engage in negotiations on the cessation of hostilities without preconditions,” said the US Secretary of State. He also renewed the call for American citizens to leave the country as soon as possible.
US President Joe Biden withdrew Ethiopia from a vital trade pact this month, but halted ahead of sanctions, hoping to give diplomacy a chance.
In response to a question, A. Blinken did not rule out the United States eventually declaring that the “atrocities” in Tigray constitute genocide.
“No matter what we call it, it has to stop and there has to be accountability,” he said.
The US secretary of state also told the Sudanese military that it had everything to gain from reversing the overthrow of the civilian government last month.
“If the military gets this train back on track and does what is necessary, I think the support that has been very strong from the international community can resume.”
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