Blinken urges political dialogue amid rising violence in Ethiopia’s Amhara region, reaffirms US support for Pretoria Agreement

Addis Abeba – The U.S. Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, raised concerns about “growing violence” in Ethiopia’s Amhara region and stressed the need for political dialogue during a phone conversation with Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, the U.S. State Department reported on Monday.

“The Secretary underscored the need for political dialogue to address Ethiopia’s other internal conflicts and shared U.S. concerns about growing violence in Amhara,” State Department spokesperson Matt Miller said in a statement.

The discussion also focused on implementing the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement, which ended the two-year war in Tigray, with Blinken “reaffirming U.S. support” for Ethiopian efforts to implement the agreement.

The agreement, formalized on November 2, 2022, in Pretoria, South Africa, between the Ethiopian government and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), recently observed its second anniversary.

In a previous statement, the U.S. State Department acknowledged “important progress” in the agreement’s implementation, noting that “the guns in Tigray remain silent,” alongside the return of displaced persons and restoration of essential services.

The statement highlighted the initiation of the Disarmament, Demobilization, and Reintegration campaign as a “critical step to consolidating the peace.”

The State Department also welcomed progress in Ethiopia’s transitional justice efforts, including the release of a Transitional Justice Policy and the completion of a Transitional Justice Implementation Roadmap, describing them as “important building blocks to achieving accountability and reconciliation.”

However, the U.S. emphasized that “much work remains” to fully fulfill the COHA’s commitments. The Department called on Ethiopia to “accelerate actions” for the voluntary return of displaced people, arrange the withdrawal of non-Ethiopian National Defense Forces from Tigray, and support “a credible and inclusive National Dialogue.”

In a statement marking the agreement’s second anniversary, the TPLF also acknowledged progress while noting that “major foundational points” remain pending. The organization indicated that certain areas of Tigray remain “under occupation” and displaced residents continue to reside in “worn-out tents.”

While the Pretoria Agreement has silenced the guns in Tigray, the neighboring Amhara region has experienced a military conflict that emerged subsequently, resulting in civilian casualties, property damage, and disruption of services. AS