[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 134 (Thursday, October 20, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2147]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     THE ERITREA-ETHIOPIA BORDER DISPUTE NEEDS AMERICAN LEADERSHIP

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. DANA ROHRABACHER

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, October 20, 2005

  Mr. ROHRABACHER. Mr. Speaker, the United States and Ethiopia have a 
long diplomatic history. It is a place that many Americans are familiar 
with.
  Next door to Ethiopia spreading out along the strategic Red Sea 
coastline is Eritrea, a relatively new country, and a place that few 
Americans seem to fully understand.
  The United States wants to have a good relationship with both 
Ethiopia and Eritrea. However, bilateral ties with both are weak and 
deteriorating.
  This situation can be corrected, but it will take more interest and 
involvement by senior leaders in the U.S. government.
  Congress is doing its part.
  Chairman Chris Smith and Representative Don Payne of the Africa 
subcommittee have held hearings on the border dispute earlier this year 
and have recently traveled to the region.
  Last year Congress passed Senate-originated legislation, which became 
law, restricting assistance to Ethiopia or Eritrea for non-compliance 
to the Eritrea-Ethiopia Border Commission findings. Unfortunately, in 
January 2005, the executive branch waived this provision on national 
security grounds. I say ``unfortunately'' because it is because of our 
national security interest that the provision should have been kept in 
place. Uncertainty on the border issue creates uncertainty in the 
region.
  Members have written letters to Secretary Rice and President Bush. We 
have urged them to clarify our policy and to become engaged in this 
increasingly volatile part of the world. The responses from the 
State Department have been unhelpful and lead us to believe that either 
there is no policy, or the policy is to apply political pressure on 
Eritrea until there is war--and then blame Eritrea for not compromising 
with Ethiopia--or continuously pressure Eritrea until they agree to 
renegotiate the final and binding decision of the EEBC.

  From Eritrea's perspective, everything depends on full implementation 
of the EEBC decisions. The U.S. supposedly supports the EEBC decisions, 
but if it does, then its support appears to be very weak.
  The U.S. policy, whatever it is, has one clear result: the status quo 
remains in place.
  Unfortunately, the status quo is untenable and will ultimately result 
in a renewal of hostilities. The current stalemate is clearly driving 
the region towards war.
  The border demarcation crisis is an existential threat to the 
security of Eritrea. The dialogue and discussion now being requested by 
Ethiopia has already occurred and is articulated by the EEBC. This fact 
underlies Eritrea's unwillingness to dialogue further with Ethiopia or 
with U.N. Special Envoy Lloyd Axworthy on border demarcation. The 
failure to resolve the border impacts all aspects of thinking in 
Eritrea. Eritrea believes that protecting the security and sovereignty 
of the nation is the first responsibility of the government.
  Let me make one thing perfectly clear: Ethiopian troops are occupying 
sovereign Eritrean territory today and have done so for years.
  Because Eritrea is a small developing country the current situation 
puts into effect enormous internal pressures. But Eritrea will not 
compromise its national sovereignty, and will instead invoke the right 
to self-defense as articulated in Article 51 of the U.N. Charter and 
move to secure its territory by force as the international community 
fails to implement and enforce the rule of law and U.N. Security 
Council resolutions.
  I am confident that if President Bush knew the details of this 
situation personally, that he would be very disappointed in the 
officials responsible for this weak policy. It does not reflect the 
President's love for freedom and justice. Our policy leads nowhere but 
to war. That is unacceptable.
  Someone has this problem figured out wrong. Today's approach mirrors 
the thinking of the Clinton Administration. One wonders where the 
Republican appointees are in the policy-making process concerning this 
part of the world.
  There is active discussion among Members about potential solutions. 
One common aspect of all potential courses of action is that more U.S. 
leadership is needed.
  U.S. leadership makes a difference. Clear policy statements by 
President Bush and other senior officials preceded Charles Taylor 
leaving Liberia, Syrian troops leaving Lebanon, Israeli settlements 
leaving Gaza, Viktor Yuschenko's election as President in Ukraine and 
so many other recent developments.
  China is paying attention to this region. Sudan has thousands of PRC 
advisors working in the oil and gas business as well as military 
advisors. China is rapidly expanding its relationship with Ethiopia and 
Eritrea. These relationships with China will falter over time, but 
right now Beijing seems to be paying attention to the Horn of Africa 
and we appear to be asleep at the switch. Someone at the State 
Department needs to wake up before it is too late.
  Mr. Speaker, the Congress is calling on the Administration to make a 
clear statement of our policy on the Eritrea-Ethiopia border 
demarcation issue. A clear statement urging Ethiopia to unconditionally 
and swiftly implement the EEBC's final and binding decision will set in 
motion positive forces that enable success. Further, such clarity would 
go a long way to starting a process that would very likely resolve this 
knotty border matter through a peaceful and diplomatic process rather 
than by more bloodshed.

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