Eritrea-Yemen Relations Picking Up Fast
Soon after an arbitration tribunal announced its decision on 9 October
1998 concerning ownership of a group of Red Sea islands disputed by
Eritrea and Yemen since December 1995, Eritrea expressed its readiness
to abide by the decision. President Isaias Afwerki attested that Eritrea
would live up to its commitment and implement the decision fully,
despite certain reservations about the result. The panel divided the
islands between the two countries and guaranteed Eritrea's traditional
fishermen the right to fish in islands awarded to Yemen.
In a joint press conference with the Yemeni Deputy Prime Minister and
Foreign Minister, Mr. Abdul-qaddar Bajmal, in Asmara on 13 October,
Eritrea's Foreign Minister, Mr. Haile Woldensae, noted, "To have any
dispute would be natural, but to solve it peacefully, legally and in a
civilized way is an important experience and lesson." Abdul-qaddar
Bajmal, on his part, said, "We are building up the bridge for the
future; we have agreed that we have to build this bridge with
cooperation in all fields ... for the benefit of the two peoples." An
Eritrean delegation, led by Trade and Industry Minister Ali Said Abdella
and including Foreign Minister Haile Woldensae, left for Yemen the
following day.
The day after the decision was announced, Mr. Marawon Noman, Yemen's
ambassador to Ethiopia, expressed his country's happiness with the
decision. He told Reuters news agency that "Yemen and Eritrea have saved
resources and lives by accepting the arbitration" and that the decision
of the two countries to resolve the dispute in this manner "had set a
new precedent for the region that territorial disputes could be resolved
in such a peaceful manner." He expressed his desire to see Ethiopia and
Eritrea resolve their border dispute in a similar manner.
The international community also hailed the settlement of the dispute by
peaceful means. A number of countries and international bodies--Egypt,
Jordan, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, China and the Arab
League--welcomed the decision and expressed their appreciation for, in
the words of Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah, "the spirit of wisdom and the
peaceful approach adopted by the two neighbors" in solving the dispute
through arbitration.
Embassy of Eritrea
Washington DC, 15 October 1998
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