Annan recommends Security Council visit Eritrea, Ethiopia again over boundary question

United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan has recommended that the Security Council make another working trip to Ethiopia and Eritrea to assure the two Governments of its support for their peace process and also suggested that the mandate of the UN peacekeeping mission there be extended until mid-September.

The two Horn of Africa countries fought a bitter battle in a boundary dispute, but reached a peace agreement in June 2000.

In his latest report to the Council, Mr. Annan recalls that it visited both countries in February 2002, just before the Boundary Commission ruled in April of that year on delimiting the border between them, to show that it would support the peace process and the demarcation.

“The Council may find it opportune to reaffirm and demonstrate its commitment by returning to Eritrea and Ethiopia,” he says.

He commends the Governments on their commitment to the agreement, enabling the 3,344-strong UN Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) to maintain the integrity of the Temporary Security Zone (TSZ).

Because of its role as a stabilizing force, “I recommend that the mandate of UNMEE be extended for an additional period of six months, until 15 September,” he says.

Meanwhile, Mr. Annan expresses misgivings about new construction undertaken “in areas that were awarded to Eritrea, which could be interpreted as an effort to create facts on the ground.”

“I note with concern statements to the effect that it is not possible to implement the Boundary Commission's decision as is. I wish to reiterate the importance for the parties to accept the demarcation of the boundary in accordance with the Commission's instructions,” he adds.