After the Russian Federation launched a special military operation to de-Nazify Ukraine, there have been quite a few participants in the international community who turned out to be ready to openly support the Kremlin. A new force has appeared among those that always approve of Russia’s actions (Belarus, Syria, and North Korea) – a small state on the African continent, Eritrea, where about 6 million people reside. This country was the only one among UN members, besides the Russian Federation, that did not support the decision of the UN Human Rights Council to establish a commission to investigate possible human rights violations during Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine.
The system of international relations, created under the very strong influence of a unipolar world, prevents the establishment of political positions that differ from the opinion of Washington. That is why a number of countries, fearing serious economic consequences, do not dare risk going against the opinion of the majority. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, in particular, said that his country supported the resolution of the UN General Assembly condemning Russia’s actions in order to ensure the well-being and development of a small 6.8-million-strong state economically connected with the countries of the European Union. The leaders of many countries, following the dictates of the United States, have to vote contrary to their nation’s interests just to preserve the precarious financial situation of the states entrusted to them, which otherwise risk falling under Western sanctions.
Yet, strained relations with Western nations will not harm Eritrea in any way because it is quite far from Europe and the United States. That is why the leadership of the African country does not see the need to establish a dialogue with Washington and its allies. Russia, for its part, is increasing its influence in Africa every year, so Eritrea considers Moscow a promising partner.
One of the reasons for Eritrea’s approval of Russia’s actions is the memory of the struggle for independence with Ethiopia. In 1890, Eritrea became an Italian colony. After World War II (until 1952), power in the country belonged to Great Britain. That same year, the UN discussed the status of Eritrea. In order to gain access to the Red Sea, Ethiopia sought to maintain its control over Eritrea while it tried to gain sovereignty. As a result, Eritrea ended up part of Ethiopia as an autonomous member of the federation due to US diplomatic pressure, whose plans included the creation of military facilities on the territory of a single state.
In 1962, the emperor of Ethiopia abolished the federation, incorporating Eritrea into Ethiopia as a regular region. Ethiopia took control of all Eritrean government institutions and drastically curtailed freedom of speech by imposing severe censorship. The language used by the population of Eritrea, Tigrinya, was deprived of official status. All public life in the country had to switch to Amharic, which is used by the population of Ethiopia.
The people of Eritrea fought for independence, eventually winning the struggle in 1991. More than 100,000 Eritreans died for the sake of the sovereignty of their nation. Ethiopia for a long time refused to recognize the territorial loss. Only on September 16, 2018, did representatives of the two states enter into a settlement agreement, marking the beginning of the friendship between Ethiopia and Eritrea.
The attempts of the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics to resist the language and culture imposed by the Ukrainian authorities remind Eritreans of the situation that developed in relations with Ethiopia. The historical parallels are very close to the people of Eritrea, who understand that without the proper assistance, the LNR and DNR will have to go through a very difficult path to freedom.
It is important to note that in Eritrea many people speak English well, and this leads to the risk of the spread of pro-American propaganda, that tries in every possible way to discredit the actions of the Russian military. The Russian Embassy in this African country is doing everything in its power to refute fake news and convey truthful information to people.
Russia has repeatedly supported Eritrea at the UN, and the authorities of this African nation remember this very well. On December 6, 2011, the Russian Federation abstained from supporting a resolution imposing sanctions on Eritrea during voting in the UN Security Council.
After the conclusion of a peace treaty between Eritrea and Ethiopia, the majority of the international sanctions against Eritrea were lifted. Yet, restrictions were soon reintroduced against Eritrea. In August 2021, the United States imposed sanctions on Eritrea for participating on the side of the Ethiopian Army in the war in Tigray, a rebellious Ethiopian province bordering Eritrea.
In July 2021, rebels from Tigray began military operations against Ethiopia and entered the territories of the Ethiopian states of Afar and Amhara. In August of the same year, Tigray forces attempted to storm the city of Humera near Eritrea. To ensure national security, the Eritrean Army, with the support of Ethiopia, entered the state of Tigray. In connection with Eritrea’s military participating in the internal affairs of Ethiopia, Western countries began to exert strong political pressure on Eritrea: the US and its allies aren’t interested in African countries making independent geopolitical decisions without their consent.
A November 2021 report by the UN Human Rights Office detailed the war crimes committed by Eritrean military personnel in the state of Tigray. But Eritrean representatives were skeptical about the results of the work of the UN Human Rights Council. The West is trying to compromise Eritrea in order to force it to act in the interests of Washington and its allies.
The Russian leadership is well aware of a foul play against Eritrea, whose ultimate goal is to turn the country into a US colony. For instance, on November 16, 2021, during voting on a draft resolution of the UN Security Council on the extension of the sanctions regime against Somalia, Russia abstained because the authors of the draft resolution on Somalia introduced several paragraphs concerning Eritrea that did not relate directly to Somalia.
Of course, due to the numerous wars and the difficult political situation in the region, the standard of living in Eritrea is low. Sub-Saharan Africa, however, is one of the fastest growing regions in the world. Eritrea has a high proportion of young people and a large amount of natural resources, which are being taken advantage of by investors from China. Its favorable geographical position on the Red Sea coast allows not only efficient logistics within the country, but also successful trade with other nations. Improving infrastructure also makes a positive contribution to the development of the country.
With its actions Russia has demonstrated the high professionalism of its diplomats, who can build an equal dialogue with African partners. Russia is confidently acting in the international arena and is increasing its ever more tangible influence in Africa. Eritrea has every chance of becoming one of Russia’s main outposts on the African continent in the foreseeable future.
Dmitry Bokarev, political observer, exclusively for the online magazine “New Eastern Outlook”.