Stubborn Eritrea denies defeat but seeks peace

By Lucy Hannan in Asmara and Declan Walsh in Adigrat, Ethiopia

26 May 2000

Ethiopia claimed a decisive victory yesterday in a crucial battle in its war with Eritrea which may hasten the end of the two-year conflict.

The Eritrean government said it had begun withdrawing troops from disputed areas as from midnight on Wednesday, but Foreign Minister Haile Woldensae told a press conference in Asmara it was a "goodwill" gesture to revive peace talks. He denied defeat.

The withdrawal "did not emanate from any military development" but was a response to a plea by the Organisation of African Unity that the two countries redeploy troops and de-escalate the conflict, he said.

Ethiopian troops captured Zalambessa, a heavily defended and highly symbolic town, early yesterday after a two-day battle. Eritrean spokesmen said their garrisons had voluntarily begun the withdrawal from Zalambessa, Bure and Tserona to comply with pre-1998 positions demanded by the OAU peace plan.

But Ethiopian government spokeswoman Salome Taddesse said: "The remnants of their troops are fleeing and being destroyed. So nobody withdrew. They were kicked out and they had better accept defeat."

Ethiopians were celebrating yesterday, while UN Secretary General Kofi Annan applauded the move by the Eritrean government.

In the town of Mekele, 100 miles south of the disputed area, children paraded through the town centre playing band music and chanting: "Zalambessa, my beloved land, you are liberated."

Zalambessa was one of the first towns Eritrean troops took at the start of hostilities in May 1998 and became one of the most fiercely contested areas. Before the conflict, most of the population were Ethiopian and it was home to the family of the Ethiopian commander in chief.

At least 100,000 have died in the war, which started with a badly demarcated strip of barren border, but escalated sharply into political, economic and historical bitterness.

Diplomats in Asmara cautiously welcomed the move towards peace but warned that diplomatic and military posturing between the countries may continue. "Ethiopia has the upper hand militarily, and Eritrea has the moral high ground, and it is premature to say it's all over," said one.

Eritrea stubbornly maintains it has inflicted losses and held ground, but was "abandoned" by the international community when the UN Security Council failed to condemn Ethiopia's annexation of a new swath of territory in the west outside the original area of dispute. Eritrea says it wants to return to negotiations but Ethiopia says it will continue fighting. Ms Taddesse repeated prime minister Meles Zenawi's statement that their strategy is to "negotiate by fighting and fight while negotiating". They had said their objective was to smash the Eritrean army.

The Eritrean retreat is being seen as an attempt to take the moral high ground in advance of the inevitable resumption of peace talks. Outside peace brokers have made intensive efforts over the past two weeks to force both sides back to the negotiating table. An EU special envoy and the OAU president shuttled between Mr Meles and his Eritrean counterpart, Issias Afewerki.

But the military option won out. Ethiopia used surprise tactics and superior air firepower to move beyond the disputed zone, deep into Eritrea. Where they will stop is not known.

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