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Jevans Nyabiage

China has welcomed the ceasefire in Ethiopia’s conflict-hit Tigray region, eight months into a civil war that has killed thousands and displaced more than 2 million but has also left the UN Security Council divided over the issue.
China’s foreign ministry said the decision would “ensure the normal operation of farming and humanitarian relief work there”.
“We sincerely hope that people in the Tigray region and the rest of Ethiopia will enjoy peace and stability, and achieve development and prosperity,” ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said on Tuesday.
“We support relevant parties in Ethiopia in realising national reconciliation through political dialogue. We believe that Ethiopia has the wisdom and capability to properly handle its internal affairs.”
Why China is taking a low profile on Ethiopia’s Tigray conflict
Ethiopia declared a unilateral ceasefire on Monday, shortly after rebels from the Tigray Defence Force (TDF) reportedly recaptured Mekelle, the region’s capital.
With its members divided, the Security Council has been unable to end the conflict. The US cut funding and imposed sanctions on the Ethiopian government and military officials. China and Russia opposed formal discussion of the issue at the UN body. China considers the war an internal affair that Ethiopia can resolve on its own or with the help of mediation efforts at the African Union.
Richard Gowan, UN director of the International Crisis Group, said “the Security Council has not played a major role in this crisis, because it has been divided over how to act”.
Ireland and the US have urged the council to push for a ceasefire and demand humanitarian access to Tigray. The US ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield had made this a personal priority since taking up the role in February, Gowan said.


Responding to the ceasefire in the Tigray war, Thomas-Greenfield said the Ethiopian government’s announcement was an important step after nine months of devastating conflict.
“The US calls on all armed actors in Tigray to respect the ceasefire and allow humanitarian organisations to get in and help people in need,” she said.
But, according to Gowan, China and Russia have largely defended Ethiopia’s right as a sovereign state to pursue its campaign against the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF). “And the African members (Kenya, Niger and Tunisia) of the council have been very cautious about saying anything that could offend Addis Ababa,” he said.
UN calls for inquiry after dozens killed in Ethiopia market air strike
Gowan said that, because of the divisions, the Security Council had not even held an open meeting on Tigray before this week, with all discussions taking place in private. He added that Western diplomats had grown frustrated and been critical of the African Council members for not taking a more active role in resolving a crisis on their continent.
“I think China and Russia will have to rethink their positions now that the TDF is winning militarily. Both Western and non-Western powers will want the ceasefire to work, and especially to ensure that Tigrayan forces don’t extend the war into Eritrea and start a wider regional conflagration,” he said.
Gowan said he hoped the Security Council would now press for a big relief effort in Tigray to help civilians suffering from war and hunger. That should be an immediate priority for all council members, he said. “Then the UN may need to think about bolder ideas like sending monitors to make sure a ceasefire sticks.”
David Shinn, former US ambassador to Ethiopia, said China, together with Russia, refused to hold a formal discussion on the issue in the Security Council. “It did not offer to mediate. It said Tigray was an internal Ethiopian affair. China had close relations with the former EPRDF/TPLF government but was anxious to strengthen relations with the Abiy Ahmed government and concluded it could achieve that goal by staying out of the Tigray issue.”
China’s Ethiopia ambitions suffer setback with telecoms decision
In contrast, Shinn said, the US took strong positions on the fighting in Tigray, had called for the removal of Eritrean forces, instituted limited sanctions against both sides, named a special envoy for the Horn of Africa – who met with Ethiopian and Eritrean officials – and offered significant humanitarian aid.
“In the process, it angered the government of Ethiopia, which accused it of interfering in an internal affair. This was a totally different approach to the one taken by China,” Shinn said.
China is a big investor in Ethiopia, channelling US$13.7 billion in loans to Addis Ababa between 2000 and 2019, according to the China Africa Research Initiative at Johns Hopkins University.
So far, Beijing has opted to remain in the background, with cause to tread carefully in a country where many interests intersect.


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Foreign ministry says civil war is an internal matter and Beijing supports reconciliation through dialogue
With its members divided, the UN body has been unable to end the conflict which has displaced more than 2 million people



Foreign ministry says civil war is an internal matter and Beijing supports reconciliation through dialogue.


United Nations

US-China relations