Alarm over army build-up in Horn

Alarm over army build-up in Horn

A UN force has been patrolling the border for a number of yearsUN Secretary-General Kofi Annan says he is very concerned about reports that Ethiopia and Eritrea have moved troops closer to their common border.
This follows the UN's reassessment of the border situation between the two countries from "stable" to "tense".
Ethiopia has not withdrawn its troops from land awarded to Eritrea by an international demarcation commission.
The demarcation followed a two-year border. Eritrea recently restricted UN troops patrolling the border.

Mr Annan called on both sides to "exercise maximum restraint and to immediately halt any action that might be misinterpreted by the other side" or that could jeopardise security arrangements agreed in their 2000 peace plan.

Badme remains under Ethiopian occupation
A source at the UN Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (Unmee) told journalists on Wednesday that both countries have moved more troops and tanks towards the border in the past two or three weeks.
Diplomats in the region report that Ethiopia has moved close to half of its armoured brigades up to the buffer zone separating both sides.
At the same time Eritrean troops are reported to have been seen inside the zone itself.
Action
Since Eritrea banned UN helicopter flights last month and placed restrictions on ground movements too, the UN can now monitor only 40% of the buffer zone.
Mr Annan urged the UN Security Council and member states "to take decisive steps to defuse the escalating tension".
The head of UN peacekeeping, Jean-Marie Guehenno, said he had briefed the Security Council members about the gravity of the situation, and the engagement of member states was now essential.
Diplomats in Asmara are waiting to see the final version of the latest UN Security Council resolution, which will probably be finalised in about a week.
They will also be interested to see the reaction from both countries, especially Eritrea.
Fury
Previous resolutions have failed to put pressure on Ethiopia to implement the border demarcation agreement.
BBC Asmara correspondent Ed Harris says the result of such weak resolutions is usually disappointment among most diplomats in Eritrea, and fury from the Eritrean government.
Last week, Eritrean President Isaias Afewerki said in a letter to the Security Council that it had lost credibility by failing to force Ethiopia from the border town of Badme, which was awarded to Eritrea by the boundary commission.
Diplomats say neither side is necessarily intent on war, and Eritrean Presidential Adviser Yemane Ghebremeskel described the reports of military movements towards the border as "irresponsible".
But there are fears that the restrictions on peacekeepers could cause a small incident to escalate into something more serious.
Eritrea became independent from Ethiopia in 1993, after Ethiopian and Eritrean rebel movements overthrew the Derg regime in Addis Ababa.
This week more than 30 people have died in Ethiopia's capital as security forces suppressed opposition protests over elections they say were rigged.