DUBAI: The Ethiopian Ambassador to Sudan said Wednesday that the border issue must be resolved “amicably and urgently,” Al Arabiya TV reported.

The Ethiopian ambassador in Khartoum claimed Sudan had captured nine Ethiopian camps since November.

The ambassador said that Ethiopia rejected the 1902 border agreement, which was concluded without Addis Ababa’s authorization.

However, Sudan refused Ethiopia’s statement, claiming it was untrue and stated that Khartoum had evidence of Ethiopia’s participation in the 1902 border agreement.

The border between Ethiopia and Sudan extends for 753 km from the tripoint with Eritrea in the north to the tripoint with South Sudan.

It was initially established between the United Kingdom, on behalf of the Anglo–Egyptian Condominium of Sudan, and independent Ethiopia in 1902.

There are many arguments that have been presented that suggest reasons why Ethiopia is not bound by the 1902 treaty, including issues surrounding the text of the agreement. The English and Amharic versions of the treaty were supposedly not ratified because the English and Amharic versions did not align in context.

In 1972, Ethiopia and now independent Sudan sought to settle their boundary more conclusively, with some adjustments to the location of the border. As of 2019, work was still ongoing.

Tensions in the border region have flared since the start of the conflict in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region in early November and the arrival of more than 50,000 mainly Tigrayan refugees in eastern Sudan.
Disputes have been concentrated on agricultural land in Al-Fashqa, which falls within Sudan’s international boundaries but has long been settled by Ethiopian farmers.
There have been armed clashes between Sudanese and Ethiopian forces in recent weeks, with both sides accusing the other of instigating the violence. The two countries held talks this week in Khartoum over the issue.