Ethiopia–Israel relations
Ethiopia |
Israel |
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Ethiopia–Israel relations are foreign relations between Ethiopia and Israel. Both countries re-established diplomatic relations in 1992. Ethiopia has an embassy in Tel Aviv.[1] Israel has an embassy in Addis Ababa.[2] Israel has been one of Ethiopia's most reliable suppliers of military assistance, supporting different Ethiopian governments during the Eritrean War of Independence.
In 2012, an Ethiopian-born Israeli, Belaynesh Zevadia, was appointed Israeli ambassador to Ethiopia.[3]
History
Royal Era
During the
In the early 1960s, Israel started helping the Ethiopian government in its campaigns against the
The Israeli perception of the war in Eritrea as part of the Arab–Israeli conflict was reinforced when reports of links between the ELF and Palestine Liberation Organization emerged after the Six-Day War.[8]
Parallel to the war in Eritrea, Israel was accused of aiding the Ethiopian government in crushing the Oromo resistance.[7]
In 1969 the Israeli government had proposed the formation of an anti-
Israel offered Ethiopia military assistance in the event of a Yemeni take-over of the islands, but Ethiopia turned down the offer fearing a political backlash. Still, Ethiopia was attacked at the 1973
The allegations of possible Israeli military bases on the islands of the Eritrean coast surfaced again soon thereafter, at a summit of Foreign Ministers of Islamic countries, held in Benghazi, Libya. The Benghazi meeting condemned Ethiopian-Israeli cooperation, and pledged support for the ELF.[9][11]
Ethiopian Prime Minister
Mengistu rule
Even after Ethiopia broke diplomatic relations with Israel in 1973, Israeli military aid continued after the Derg military junta came to power and included spare parts and ammunition for U.S.-made weapons and service for U.S.-made F-5 jet fighters.[4] Israel also maintained a small group of military advisers in Addis Ababa.[4]
In 1978, however, when the Israeli Minister of Foreign Affairs
As Mengistu's allies in the
During 1990 Israeli-Ethiopian relations grew stronger. According to the New York Times, Israel supplied 150,000 rifles, cluster bombs, ten to twenty military advisers to train Mengistu's Presidential Guard, and an unknown number of instructors to work with Ethiopian commando units. Unconfirmed reports also suggested that Israel had provided the Ethiopian Air Force with surveillance cameras and had agreed to train Ethiopian pilots.[4]
Commercial relations
Trade relations between Ethiopia and Israel have grown over the years. In the early 1980s, Dafron, an Israeli notebook manufacturer, won a government contract to market 2 million notebooks to Ethiopia.
Israeli arm sales to Ethiopia
Israel has provided air defense systems to protect strategic points in Ethiopia and sold assault rifles to the Ethiopian National Defense Forces.[18][19]
Ethiopian Jews
In return for this aid, Ethiopia permitted the emigration of the Beta Israel. Departures in the spring reached about 500 people a month before Ethiopian officials adopted new emigration procedures that reduced the figure by more than two-thirds. The following year,[when?] Jerusalem and Addis Ababa negotiated another agreement whereby Israel provided agricultural, economic, and health assistance. Also, in May 1991, as the Mengistu regime neared its end, Israel paid US$35 million in cash to allow nearly 15,000 Beta Israel to emigrate from Ethiopia to Israel.[4]
See also
References
- ^ Embassy of Ethiopia in Tel Aviv
- ^ Embassy of Israel in Addis Ababa
- ^ Foreign Ministry names first Israeli of Ethiopian origin as ambassador
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Ethiopia-Israel
- ^ a b c d Pateman, Roy. Eritrea: even the stones are burning. Lawrenceville, NJ [u.a.]: Red Sea Press, 1998. pp. 96–97
- ^ Iyob, Ruth. The Eritrean Struggle for Independence: Domination, Resistance, Nationalism, 1941–1993. African studies series, 82. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995. p. 108
- ^ a b Lata, Leenco. The Ethiopian State at the Crossroads: Decolonisation and Democratisation or Disintegration? Lawrenceville, N.J. [u.a.]: Red Sea, 1999. pp. 95–96
- ^ Lefebvre, Jeffrey Alan. Arms for the Horn: U.S. Security Policy in Ethiopia and Somalia, 1953–1991. Pitt series in policy and institutional studies. Pittsburgh, Pa: University of Pittsburgh Press, 1991. p.
- ^ a b c Spencer, John H. Ethiopia at Bay: A Personal Account of the Haile Selassie Years. [S.l.]: Tsehai Pub, 2006. pp. 322–323
- ^ a b Tiruneh, Andargachew. The Ethiopian Revolution, 1974–1987: A Transformation from an Aristocratic to a Totalitarian Autocracy. LSE monographs in international studies. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993. pp. 31–32
- ^ Situation in the Horn; HIM's Visit
- ^ Getachew Metaferia, Ethiopia and the United States: History, Diplomacy, and Analysis p. 72.
- ^ Perlez, Jane (November 5, 1989). "Ethiopian-Israeli accord eases Jewish emigration". The New York Times. Retrieved February 20, 2021.
- ^ Africa - Ethiopia - General Information Archived 2007-06-10 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Tiruneh, Andargachew. The Ethiopian Revolution, 1974-1987: A Transformation from an Aristocratic to a Totalitarian Autocracy. LSE monographs in international studies. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993. p. 360
- ^ Saying goodbye to Israel's beloved notebook, Haaretz
- ^ "Trade in Ethiopia: An Overview". Embassy of Ethiopia in Israel. Archived from the original on 2012-07-29. Retrieved 2012-05-07.
- ^ "Concerns mount in Egypt as Israel boosts ties with Ethiopia". The Arab Weekly. July 20, 2019.
- ^ "Friction with Cairo over Israel air defense system for Ethiopia's Great Nile dam". DEBKA. July 8, 2019.