Eritrea-Ethiopia face sanctions
2005-11-23 23:09
New York - The United Nations security council has threatened sanctions against Eritrea and Ethiopia if either uses force to settle their bitter border dispute.
With tensions between the neighbours soaring, Eritrea was also warned it must lift restrictions on the movements of UN peacekeepers,
The 15-member council unanimously adopted a Greek-drafted resolution on Wednesday that "expresses its determination to consider further appropriate measures, including under Article 41 of the charter of the United Nations, if one or both of the parties fail to comply with" two key demands.
Article 41 allows for economic or diplomatic sanctions.
The sanctions would be considered if Eritrea did not "reverse, without further delay or preconditions" a ban on UN helicopter flights and other "restrictions" on the UN peacekeeping mission on the Eritrea-Ethiopia border (Unmee).
Return to December 2004 levels
The resolution also threatened sanctions if either country did not "show maximum restraint and refrain from any threat or use of force against each other".
It demanded that the arch-rivals return to levels of deployment as of December 16 2004 and to complete the redeployment within 30 days "to prevent aggravation of the situation".
The text called on UN chief Kofi Annan to monitor compliance with the demands, and to report to the council in 40 days.
The resolution demands "that Ethiopia accept fully and without further delay the final and binding decision of the Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission and take immediately concrete steps to enable, without preconditions, the commission to demarcate the border completely and promptly".
The council said it would "monitor closely the actions of both parties in relation to the demarcation of the border".
Last week, Unmee reported increasing movement of troops along both sides of the Eritrean-Ethiopian border where it said the situation "remains tense and potentially volatile".
Sabre-rattling rhetoric
Unmee has said its border surveillance ability has been cut by more than 60% since early October when Asmara banned its helicopter flights and limited ground patrols on its territory.
Eritrea took those measures while issuing sabre-rattling rhetoric about Ethiopia's refusal to accept a legally-binding border demarcation emanating from a 2000 peace deal that ended a bloody two-year war.
The United Nations this week ordered the families of all its staff in Eritrea to leave the country because of the renewed tensions.