Eritrea Slams US Sanctions Against Country's Military

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Eritrea decries the sanctions imposed by the United States against its armed forces, describing them as a blatant violation of its sovereignty, the Eritrean Ministry of Information said on Saturday

Washington sanctioned the Eritrean Defense Forces on Friday over its role in the ongoing armed conflict in Ethiopia, including alleged human rights abuses.

"This unilateral sanction, that shifts blame to and scapegoats Eritrea on the basis of spurious allegations, is in contravention of international law, and constitutes a flagrant breach of the sovereignty, independence and liberation of peoples and nations," the ministry said in a statement.

Ethiopia has been embroiled in a domestic conflict since last November when the central government accused the Tigray People's Liberation Front of attacking a military base and launched a counter operation in the northern parts of the country. Neighboring Eritrea supported the Ethiopian authorities, although in the spring of 2021 it said it was withdrawing its troops from the Tigray region.