Ethiopian-Eritrean Peace Conference

[Naio90]

Following decades of political and social tensions in the northwestern part of Ethiopia, a civil war broke out between the region formerly controlled by italian colonists and the interior of Ethiopia. The result of this, after years of brutal fighting, was the establishment of the State of Eritrea and its recognition by the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia. However, although mutual official recognition existed, the official borders between both nations where never established and no mutually agreed dividing line was set. This resulted in significant economic losses for both nations, with Ethiopia being cut off from the sea and Eritrea ending up with most of its territory being desert wasteland.​

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The new ethiopian regime, under Prime Minister Abyi Ahmed set itself the goal of finally solving this issue and set the ground for the establishment of formal de jure borders between both states and to kick-start positive mutually beneficial diplomatic and economic relations.​

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In this context, and after months of intense diplomatic talks around the world, presenting the situation to the international community, the moment of calling for an international conference between the involved Parties was here.​

Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia የኢትዮጵያ ፌዴራላዊ ዴሞክራሲያዊ ሪፐብሊክ Message from the Office of the Prime Minister _________________________________________________________________________​

Status: Private To: His Excellency Mr. Isaias Afwerki, President of the State of Eritrea Zak Re: Invitation to international Conference​

Your Excellency,​ It is with great honor and optimism that I contact you today on behalf of the Government and People of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, regarding the current state of the relations between my nation and the State of Eritrea. As you know, after years of civil war, Ethiopia recognized the cesesion of Eritrea and its existance as an independent sovereign state. As a logical consequence of this brutal process, political and diplomatic dialogue between both of our nations have been very sparse and riddled with obstacles.​ ​ Under this current context, both of our nations and the entire region of Eastern Africa are losing opportunities to grow and prosper, to improve the quality of life of our citizens. My Government has set ourselves the goal of solving this issue once and for all and to establish a positive relationship between us and finally life up to the potential we have.​ ​ Obviously the main issue to be addressed firstly is to transform the current de facto border between Eritrea and Ethiopia into a mutually recognized de jure one, including the rearrangements to it that will grant both of our nations benefits on the long term.​ ​ With this said, I would like to formally invite you to an international conference to address this issues in the coming weeks, in a place to be established but near our current de facto borders to diplomatically solve this impasse. In order to give this process more transparency, we would also suggest that each Party invites one Representative from a third state to act as observer and eventually, if required, mediator.​ ​ We eagerly await your comments on this and look forward to a future of cooperation. ​ With all my consideration,​ Dr. Abiy Ahmed Prime Minister of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia Addis Ababa​

 

[Zak]

State of Eritrea
Security Classification: ENCRYPTED​

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Dear Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed,

It is a pleasure to hear from you after the civil war that has driven investment and prosperity away from both of our countries but the Eastern African region as a whole. I am glad to hear that you would like to work together to grasp onto these new opportunities that will come for both of our countries and equally deal with the situation surrounding our current borders. I accept your invitation to the diplomatic conference you are arranging and I hope that a deal can be made for all of our citizens.

I will make contact with my advisers in the coming hours to seek out a third state observer and we extend the invite to yourself to seek a mediator that will observe things from your side.

Regards,
Isaias Afwerki
President of Eritrea
State of Eritrea

Naio90

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[Naio90]

Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia የኢትዮጵያ ፌዴራላዊ ዴሞክራሲያዊ ሪፐብሊክ Message from the Office of the Prime Minister _________________________________________________________________________​

Status: Private To: His Excellency Mr. Isaias Afwerki, President of the State of Eritrea Zak Re: Peace Summit​

Your Excellency,​ We are delighted to hear that the interest in overcoming our mutual difficulties is reciprocated. As such, we intend to go all the way and set this issue to be our first priority.​ ​ We have reached an agreement with the Adigrat University in Adigrat, Tigray Region of Ethiopia, few kilometers away from the current de facto border betwen our nations to host this conference. If this is acceptable for your Government, we would like to propose for the summit to take place there, in a 2 weeks time (OOC: next week), to give our teams time to prepare everything required and our policy makers to make the final adjustments.​ ​ Furthermore, regarding the invitation of observers, we would like to announce that the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia has contacted the United States of America, and invited them to act as such on our behalf. The State Department of said nation has accepted our call.​ ​ We would appreciate if you could notify us of your selected nation and if the proposed date and place for the summit are suitable. In such case, we would like to make a public announcement. I personally think that diplomatic endeavours such as this need to be spread throughout the news, in a time where war in Africa occupaies once more the headlines. ​ With all my consideration,​ Dr. Abiy Ahmed Prime Minister of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia Addis Ababa​

 

[Zak]

State of Eritrea
Security Classification: ENCRYPTED​

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Dear Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed,

I thank you for getting back to me, the date and location are acceptable and we are looking forward to meeting in person. I have made contact with the United Kingdom to assist the efforts on our end and I hope to hear from their leader in the coming days but if I do not then I will seek to find another country to act as a mediator/observer in our upcoming meeting. If our nation does change then I will be in further contact with your office over the next coming days.

Regards,
Isaias Afwerki
President of Eritrea
State of Eritrea

Naio90

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[Naio90]

ETHIOPIAN - ERITREAN PEACE SUMMIT 2001 Adigrat Conference​

Date:	October 2001
Location:	Adigrat, Tigray Region, Federal Republic of Ethiopia
Participants:	Prime Minister Abyi Ahmed for the Federal Democratic republic of Ethiopia President Isaias Afwerki for the State of Eritrea ------ Dr. Arnold Ross (Observer/Mediator) TBD

The selected venue for the Peace Conference was the Campus grounds of the Adigrat University in the city of Adigrat in the northern region of Tigray, close to the de facto border between Ethiopia and Eritrea. The campus ground would be secured by local and federal police 3 days before the scheduled start of the meeting, remaining under constant surveillance and patrol afterwards to guarantee the safety of the diplomatic procedures. The main conference room of the University would be prepared accordingly, bearing the flags of the the negotiating parties as well as the US flag in its role of observer/moderator. Simultaneous translations would be offered into Oromo, Tingrinya and English. A big wooden table would be prepared, with 5 chairs on opposite sides and 2 additional ones on one of the remaining sides. The local airport would see flight restrictions put in place to guarantee an efficient movement of the delegations as well as its safety through a specially designated parking area (which would also be secured). Customs and border agents would be posted there to servive the foreign arrivals and avoid any delays. In downtown Adigrat, the 2 main hotels would be exclusively reserved for the official delegations and support teams, also under constant police surveilland. Police escorted motorcades would be prepared to mobilize all perticipants in a safely manner. All lodging, transportation and food services would be covered by Ethiopia, unless required otherwise. Everything would be ready for the arrival of the participants.

Zak Odinson

 

[Odinson]

The United States Secretary of State appointed Dr. Arnold Ross as the United States Special Envoy for this operation. Dr. Ross had a PhD in International Relations and had worked with the State Department for almost two decades now, while his full-time job was teaching at NYU. Travelling with Dr. Ross were several representatives from the State Department as well as some professional colleagues to assist him. While the professor enjoyed teaching the youth of America, he also had real-world experience. He had served in the State Department's foreign service and worked for three different ambassadors - two in Europe, as well as one in Africa. He arrived to Adigrat University along with the other representatives from the State Department, as well as ten Diplomatic Security Service special agents who were charged with ensuring the safety of Ross and the rest of the American delegation.

After the arrival of the American delegation, they would go to the university and prepare to help open the negotiations along with the Ethiopians and Eritreans.

Naio90

 

[Naio90]

Having been informed of the composition and arrival of the US delegation, the protocol and ceremonial department of the ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs would have prepared everything, from the migration and visa issues to the transportation and lodging of the americans in the northern town of Adigrat.

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In parallel to the arrival of the first foreign delegation, the ethiopians themselves would prepare their own delegation, composed mainly by Prime Minister Abyi Ahmed himself and the Minister of Foreign Affairs Demele Mekkonen. They woudl travel from the capital city to the location of the Summit in a chartered flight together with support staff and specialists for the occasion.

Once arrived and settled in, while some of the specialists would finish up the official ethiopia stance and proposals, the Prime Minister would extend an invitation to Dr Arnold Ross to a small welcome cocktail in the lobby of one of the cities main hotels.

Everything would be in place, waiting for the arrival of the eritreans and related to start he meeting on the next day.

Odinson Zak

 

[Zak]

​

ENCRYPTED
With the meeting upcoming, President Isaias Afwerki left his compound in the capital city of Asmara and made his way to Adigrat University within the Tigray region of Ethiopia. He was joined by close loyalists to his party and various security agents belonging to the Eritrean Police Force, during the journey to the meeting point for the conference, the President looked over various notes that he had drafted the day before and studied plans drafted by advisers. Upon arrival at the Adigrat University facility, the motorcade stopped and one of his closest security agents opened the door to a smartly dressed Isaias Afwerki who had dressed in one of his best suits for the meeting and carried his briefcase as his aides and security followed in quick succession to the meeting room prepared by the Ethiopians who he greeted first and then onto the American observers who had been chosen as observers for the meeting.

Naio90 Odinson

 

[Naio90]

With all participants having arrived to Adigrat, the official schedule for the pace summit could begin. Support staff would get up early in the morning to set up everything at the designated conference room. Translators, aides and IT personnel would be on site, checking their equipment and making sure everything was running flawless for when the delegations arrived to the scene.

The Ethiopians, led by the Primer Minister, would enter the conference room, followed by the americans with Dr Ross and finally the just arrived eritrens headed by President Isais Afwerki would take their assigned seats. After some informal chat and having received the green light from the technical and support staff, the conference would begin with an introduction by Prime Minister Abyi Ahmed.


"President Afwerki, Dr. Ross, dear collegues and diplomats, ladies and gentlemen, it is with great pleasure that I welcome you today on behalf of the People of Ethiopia to this wonderful hub of education in Adigrat. My Government firmly believes that education is a key element for sustainable prosperity on the long run, it is necessary to be able to think ahead of tomorrow and be prepared for what is coming.

But students, young and old, can only really focus on benefit from academical and practical knowledge while living in an environment in which they do not have to worry about what they are going to be dining that day, or even if at all. They cannot worry about being drafted into a war that they have no real interest in. They need stability, to be able to project their lives under foreseeable and predictible prospects. That brings us to how a nation operates as a whole. To be able to achieve such context, the Government needs to be fully dedicated to their people and guarantee them certain basic needs, this includes obviously that stability and security.

Ethiopia and Eritrea have had a very intense relationship during the past 300 years. First under a common ruler, then segregated by force by a colonial power that forked our paths. Then, another global conflict reunited us again under the same regime. But the damage was done and our destinies were clearly meant to be apart. It took several years for our leaders to understand this, and way too much bloodshed.

Mr. President, we have today the opportunity to give our people the stability and guarantee they need, to amend the mistakes from our predecesors and to solve the pending issues between Ethiopia and Eritrea to finally start an era of international cooperation, commerce and growth.

We arrived here with proposals that are meant to bring equal economic and social opportunities to all ethiopians and eritreans, please, accompany us in this journey to progress.

And to conclude, I would like to personally thank Dr. Arnold Ross and the Government of the United States of the America, who has been following this process for months now and are here as a token of transparency and goodwill. A proof that diplomacy is the key, now more than ever."

With this, the PM would yield the floor to Eritrea, followed then by the USA, in case they wanted to address the room as well.

Zak Odinson

 

[Zak]

The Eritrean President entered the room with his staff and close aides and took their designated seats. The meeting was going to be groundbreaking for the African continent if the two countries could make an agreement. The Eritrean delegation listened to the Ethiopian leader when he began his speech and made notes to discuss with the President upon conclusion of the meeting.

"Prime Minister Ahmed, thank you for inviting me here today and to Doctor Ross, thank you for coming here from your country to witness history. The United States of America is a pioneer in the world which wants to promote peace and stability across the world which is very important in our continent as you know Prime Minister Ahmed with the ongoing situation in the Congolese Empire. As you know yourself and have stated so, the relationship that our countries have held has been very intense but I am looking forward to the future, not only for the Ethiopian people but for my people back in Eritrea and we would like to seek a consensus that will work for both of our countries and the whole continent as a whole."

The President returns to his seat, allowing for the United States diplomat to speak or for the Ethiopian leader to return to the floor if he so wished.

Naio90 Odinson

 

[Odinson]

Dr. Arnold Ross, the Special Envoy who was the head of the American delegation, cleared his throat and stood up. He was in his mid-50s and had a full head of hair as well as a short beard, but it was all solid white. He was wearing a tweed three-piece suit with a jacket that had an American flag lapel pin as well as brown elbow patches, and a matching vest. Ross took off his reading glasses and folded the temples so that they neatly fit in his hand. Instead of putting them down, he kept them in his right hand and occasionally waved them around a bit as he spoke, as if he was already back in the classroom. The professor was tall and slim, and he had pale skin due to his Scottish Heritage.​

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"Prime Minister Ahmed, President Afwerki, it is an honor to moderate these talks. However, my role here is small. In fifty years when children at your schools are learning about the results of these talks, they are not going to remember the drabby old professor that was the moderator. No, what they are going to remember is that Ethiopia and Eritrea came together, willingly, to hold formal diplomatic negotiations on such a sensitive subject as this, especially with the history that your two countries have been through. They will learn that your two countries became an example to the African continent of how issues between sovereign states should, and must, be resolved in this twenty-first century. Your future teachers will compare these negotiations to the carnage that is happening to the west, and they will tell the future children of your countries how smart their leaders were to come to an amicable solution. I feel privileged to be part of this process and I feel confident that we will not only make significant progress, but come to a solution and conclusion," he said. He felt his lecture had lasted long enough, so he took his seat.​

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Naio90 Zak​

 

[Naio90]

Some ethiopian aides, diplomats and other people in the conference room would applaud Dr. Ross's words.


Afterwards, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia, Ambassador Debeke Mekonnen, would activate his microphone and address the floor.

"Prime Minister, Mr President, Dr. Ross, dear colleagues, to start off let me propose a structure for this meeting. We will now present our formal position to the floor, including our proposal. Afterwards we would like to hear the position on that and/or counterproposal from the State of Eritrea, followed by, if required an intervention from the US to present a middle point or facilitate talks."

The Minister would then yield the floor to the Director of the Department of Legal Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia for his intervention.

"Thank you Minister.

The root of the cause that gathers us here today dates back centuries. As we all know, in the 19th Century, while Ethiopia remained independent during the colonial conquests of Africa, Italy created a colony called Eritrea around Asmara effectively splitting the ethiopian territory following Rome' colonial desires to have a port region on the Red Sea. After World War II and Italy's defeat, Britain occupied Eritrea, just to later be Eritrea federated with Ethiopia in 1952 by the ratification of the former UN General Assembly Resolution 390.

But, at this point, almost 100 years of italian occupation had marked a divergence in social and cultural aspects between the people in Ethiopia and Eritrea, thus, after decades of civil unrest and plain out war, independence of Eritrea as a sovereign country was accepted less than 10 years ago. However, the formal limits of each state jurisdiction were never established and so, the damage of colonialism persisted, dragging both our economies down and having a negative impact on our people.

On one side, Eritrea ended up with vast spans of infertile, arid desert wastelands, unproductive and of zero economic and commercial value. Nothing can be produced there and no human settlement is viable or sustainable on those areas.

On the other hand, Ethiopia was cut off entirely from access to the sea, effectively left out from international maritime trade.

In between those extremes, multiple smaller divergences split towns and villages, bringing families apart.

Our proposal, which we have carefully studied, is simple: Settle the minor divergences on a case by case, and resolve the major inequality by swapping territories as follows:

1. The Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia will cede the territory known as "Western Tigray" and "Northwestern Tigray", including its entire public infrastructure, to the State of Eritrea.

2. The State of Eritrea will cede the territory known as "Southern Red Sea" to the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, including its entire public infrastructure.

While both territories to be swapped are of similar territorial size and population, the lands to be transferred to Eritrea have an intrinsic economic value due to containing land fertile for oilseed crops and cotton and capable of holding and rising livestock. On the other side, the lands yielded to Ethiopia are mostly uninhabited and are arid desert wasteland, but would allow Ethiopia to regain access to the open sea.

Additionally, Ethiopia would propose to give all people currently inhabiting the lands to be swapped double citizenship and special border crossing facilitations, as well as subsidies and tax reductions to promote economic growth and development. For this cause, Ethiopia is willing to set up a special Trust Fund.

Finally, we would also like to complement this agreement with the establishment of a bilateral Free Trade Agreement and Declaration of Friendship between our states.

Thank you."

Zak Odinson

 

[Zak]

​

President Isaias Afwerki listens into the proposed amendments by the Ethiopian Prime Minister and he confers with his staff, taking a look at the proposed changes via the pictures set out in front of them. He took a sip of water and then continued listening into the long proposal.

"Director, you come with an interesting proposal. Our countries hold tense relations between each other but I am happy that relations are progressing between our two countries and we can be here today. The main port of Eritrea is in Assab which would now be placed into the new borders of Ethiopia which would be taking a lot away from my stable but poor country at the moment. We also have the added fact that not all Eritreans are going to take to this deal lightly and may not want to stay in the new borders of Ethiopia if we place this deal into effect in the coming days and weeks. You want both of our countries to prosper but I am only seeing it benefit your country Director whilst my country loses out."

The President stands down from the dispatch box, allowing the floor to the United States delegation or to allow the Ethiopian delegation to return to the floor next.

Odinson Naio90

 

[Naio90]

The PM of Ethiopia would lsiten carefully and consult with his Minsiter of Foreign Affairs, before requesting the floor.

"President Afwarki, thank you for your words and sincerity. It is important for us to understand Eritrea's position in order to find a fair solution for both sides.

Regarding the issue of being Assab the main port of Eritrea at the moment, we would be willing to compensate the loss of that city by investing the necesary funds to upgrade and expand your portuary facilities in Massawa, which we understand would be your second port in terms of size and operations. Considering the territories you would be incorporating, Massawa would also be located geographically closer to your economic core, compared to Assab, and therefore would reduce your overall transportation and logistical times and costs.

Another option would be to create an eritrean enclave around the city of Assab, and grant freedom of movement across the border to the inhabitants. We would prefer the first alternative though, to mantain certain territorial cohesion.

As for the VERY important issue of the inhabitants wishes. We understand that there might be some that may be against the transfer, but we plan to compensate that as well with the previously mentioned Trust Fund, granting of special migratory and economic rights, subsidies to development and also giving a plausible time-span for any potential territorial swap that involves inhabited lands, to give everybody enough time to resettle, if so desired. Re-settlement sudsidies might also be discussed."

The PM would finish his intervention and open the floor to either the eritreans or the US.

Zak Odinson

 

[Naio90]

Zak Odinson

 

[Odinson]

Dr. Ross was not interested in dictating the conversation, so he made sure to keep quiet until it seemed that a recommendation was needed and would possibly make a meaningful difference. He cleared his throat and gave his opinion as a neutral observer.

"Gentlemen," the professor said as he reviewed a few papers in front of him that showed demographic, economic, and geographic data for the provinces that would potentially be swapped. "I will begin by saying that it is clear that the Ethiopian government is making a good-faith effort with their proposal. Economically and geographically, Eritrea would have plenty to gain by integrating the provinces of Western Tigray and Northwestern Tigray. While I could go into more detail about this, I think that the agricultural advantages that would come from the lush, fertile land there speak for themselves. If these lands and its resources were to be managed correctly, Eritrea would be able to not only diversify, but also increase its native food production.

"However, with that being said, I do hear and understand President Afwerki's concerns. It is true that Assab is currently the largest port in Eritrea. Prime Minister Ahmed, I like your idea of improving the Eritrean port in Massawa as a compromise, however I would like to recommend that this be taken a couple of steps further in order to ensure that Eritrea is set up to continue international shipments the moment this territorial exchange happens," the professor said.

One of the American staffers handed out some paperwork to both the Eritreans and the Ethiopians which detailed a simple map of present-day Eritrea (pictured below).

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"What you are all looking at here is a map of the only railroad in Eritrea, the 'Eritrean Railway.' The railway still exists today, but it is in a state of severe disrepair. My understanding is that there are some remaining steam locomotives from the 1930s, however the vast majority of the tracks are too poor for those locomotives to run on anyway. Today, all Eritrean imports by sea have to be transported by truck to other parts of the country. To make matters worse, these imports-by-sea have to be driven from the remote port of Assab all of the way to western Eritrea, including the capitol Asmara. In addition to the Ethiopian delegation's first proposal, I would like to add this:

"One: The Ethiopian government will fully fund the development of a port in Massawa that can handle twice the number of daily imports of the current port in Assab.
Two: The Ethiopian government will fully fund the restoration of the railroad between the Eritrean city of Massawa and the Eritrean city of Asmara. The railroad will be brought up to standard gauge and will directly connect to the new port in Massawa so that cargo unloaded at the port can be directly put on trains and brought to the capitol of Asmara.
Three: To assist with this process, I will use my connections in the United States government to ensure that Eritrea will have access to modern-day rolling stock and locomotives that are appropriate for this specific situation. We will gladly sell the rolling stock and locomotives to Ethiopia, at just production cost, who will then transfer them to Eritrea.

"What this will guarantee is that Eritrea will have a port closer to its capitol that is bigger, newer, and more efficient than the one at Assab, and Eritrea will once again have a fully functional railroad that can quickly bring imported goods from the new port in Massawa to the capitol of Asmara. This, of course, would be on top of the economic and agricultural benefits that Eritrea would get from annexing Western Tigray and Northwestern Tigray," Dr. Ross said. He started to sit down, but then raised his finger.

"There is one more thing that I forgot, my apologies gentlemen. President Afwerki, you also mentioned that Eritreans in the Southern Red Sea region, which will be ceded to Ethiopia, may not like this deal. I believe that the Ethiopian offer of dual citizenship, freedom of movement, and paying for any voluntary relocation is a very fair compromise. However, Prime Minister Ahmed, if I may just suggest one more assurance that you could make to President Afwarki... Once this deal goes through and the region of Southern Red Sea becomes a part of Ethiopia, your government will guarantee that the Southern Red Sea will become one of the 'regional states' of Ethiopia and that it will retain its current borders. This will mean that the Southern Red Sea will of course have its own government, as other regional states do, while also having representation in Addis Ababa. What this will guarantee is that the people in the Southern Red Sea will not be broken up into many states, and that it will not be absorbed by other states, but it will instead be allowed to keep its identity and regional unity....

"Well gentlemen, I think I have spoken quite enough. I hope that these ideas were productive," Dr. Ross said, before he took his seat and opened the floor to the President and Prime Minister to respond.

Naio90 Zak

 

[Naio90]

The ethiopians would caregully listen to the proposals made by the US mediator and request a brief recess to evaluate the details. After about half an hour they would return and request the microphone.

Prime Minister Ahmed would address the room.

"Thank you Dr. Ross for the proposal. We have reviewed it and consider it a positive addition to the proposed deal, if the Eritrean's agree on them.

Before advancing we would require some metrics on the current trade volume and activity at Massawa, to estimate the aproximate cost of the modernization and upgrade of the port. Regarding the proposed modernization of the railway, its current states renders it basically impossible to be modernized and makes it more convenient to tear the current infrastructure apart and start from scratch.

We appreciate the US offer for rolling stock and are interested in, once and if the deal is settled, to initiate talks with US manufacturers to equip the eritrean railway company with new rolling stock.

Regarding the payment, comparatively minor expenses such as the rolling stock could be bought directly in bulk by the State of Ethiopia. But we might need to ask to establish a payment plan for the upgrades in port and railway. We would basically work in stages, funding them one after the other until everything is set together.

Finally, we thank Dr. Ross for bringing up the matter of the administrative organization of the potentially transfered region of South Red Sea. It was our intention all along to keep said territory intact and integrate it into Ethiopia as a Province with equal representation at our Congress. Furthermore, the current provincial and local authorities would also be allowed to serve their term and open to continue in public office, if the people there so decides."

Odinson Zak

 

[Zak]

"Doctor Ross, Prime Minister Ahmed. This could be the outcome that we've all been looking for. The suggestions that Doctor Ross have brought to the table are very much appreciated. The Port of Massawa currently handles one million metric tons of dry cargo and 205 thousands of bulk liquid cargo per annum. The offer of Doctor Ross using his contacts to acquire modern rolling stock is very much appreciated and we will await further contact after the meeting to explore this avenue. The fact that we will get a more modern port closer to its capital that is bigger, newer, and more efficient than the one at Assab will be very much appreciated by the Eritrean population.

We will agree to the above terms set out by the United States and Ethiopian delegations, Prime Minister Ahmed, would you like to draft a treaty that we can sign."

Odinson Naio90

 

[Naio90]

After the eritrean intervention was finished, the Ethiopian PM requested the floor again.

"We are delighted to have reached a preliminary agreement on general terms so quickly. It clearly puts in evidence the interest of all involved Parties in making this happen. We would like my eritrean counterpart for the provided metrics, as well as once again Dr. Ross for his input and offer of equipment.

I would now suggest we go into a recess to reconvene tomorrow morning, as to give the technical staff the opportunity to put into paper what we just discussed. We will be forwarding you all a preliminary draft of this, including the first concrete numbers. Please read it throughfully and we can discuss the details tomorrow."

With this, the PM would cede the floor to any of the other Parties, if so required. On the contrary, they would call it for the day. In the meantime, the technica staff would start drafting the first document.

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After hours of consultations and draftings, the following document would privately be distributed for review and discussion to Eritrea and the US Delegation in Adigrat:

Bilateral Friendship Treaty between the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia and the State of Eritrea​

The Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia and the State of Eritrea, hereafter referred to as "the Parties",

Considering the historical ties and geographical proximity between their respective nations, the unresolved issue of the definition of the current land and sea borders between both Parties and seeking to further promote their mutual interests and cooperation,

Have agreed to enter into the following treaty:


Section I - Territorial Arrangements
1. The Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia will cede the territory known as "Western Tigray" and "Northwestern Tigray", including its entire public infrastructure, to the State of Eritrea.

2. The State of Eritrea will cede the territory known as "Southern Red Sea" to the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, including its entire public infrastructure.

3. The sectors of national boundaries, both land and maritime, not comprised by Articles 1 and 2 between the Parties shall be formaly defined as per the limits depicted in Annex I.



Section II - Development of Port and Railroad
4. The Ethiopian government will fully fund the development, expansion and modernization of the Port of Massawa, to an extend that allows for operations that can handle twice the number of daily imports of the current port in Assab.

5. The Ethiopian government will fully fund the restoration of the railroad between the Eritrean city of Massawa and the Eritrean city of Asmara. The railroad will be brought up to standard gauge and will directly connect to the modernized port in Massawa, refered to in Paragraph 4. The mentioned funds will cover the acquisition of rolling stock and locomotives to operate the railroad.



Section III - Territorial organization and Rights of the Inhabitants
6. The Parties will offer the populations currently residing within the territories subject to efective sovereignty swap dual citizenship and freedom of movement between the mutual borders.

7. The Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia will establish a trust fund destined to cover potential relocation costs and subsidies to facilitate the reintegration of the populations currently residing within the territories to be incorporated to its territory.

8. The Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia will determine ad hoc tax benefits and subsidies to promote the economic development of the integrated regions.

9. The Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia guarantees that the Southern Red Sea will become one of the "regional states" of Ethiopia and that it will retain its current borders, equalizing it to the other Provinces currently composing the administrative structure of the nation, including the continuity of its current Government until the next election.



Section IV - Resolution of Border Disputes
10. The Parties will work together to resolve all active border disputes in a peaceful and cooperative manner.


Section V - Final Provisions
11. This Treaty shall enter into force upon signature by the representatives of both Parties and shall remain in force indefinitely unless otherwise mutually agreed upon.

12. The new international borders mentioned in Section I will enter into effect on the 31st of December 2001 at 23.59 local time.

13. Starting with the signing of the present Agreement, both Parties will authorize the provisory entry into the territories to be swapped of the personnel required to guarantee a smoth transition and application of the decisions here established, informing all movements to the other Party in a transparent and direct way.


Any dispute arising out of this Treaty shall be resolved by negotiations between the Parties.

Signed on ___________ in duplicate in the official ethiopian and eritrean language.



For the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia:
Prime Minister: Abiy Ahmed


For the State of Eritrea:
President: Isaias Afwerki


Zak Odinson

 

[Zak]

The President, after giving it to his legal and political team and gaining the approval, would sign the treaty to allow it to be entered into power on the date of the 31st December as stated on the treaty. The Eritrean delegation erupted into a chorus of cheers and clapping as the best struck deal for all had now been found. It may not have been the best deal that could be struck but President Afewerki was seeking a consensus that the development of his country was the best deal for everyone involved.

"Prime Minister Ahmed, Doctor Ross, I want to thank you for this moment. This is history for both of our countries and I am glad that we could have the United States of America here to mediate over these talks, if they did not attend then we may not have been able to strike a deal at all and we may have witnessed another bloody and brutal campaign. Prime Minister Ahmed, thank you for allowing my people to be free and for us to be able to develop our country at last. The Horn of Africa will now see more stability in our region than ever before, so thank you."

The President returned to his seat, allowing the Ethiopian delegation or the United States delegation to make their closing remarks.

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