According to local Ethiopian media reports, Eritrea, a neighboring country of Ethiopia, announced on July 24 that starting from the end of September, all Ethiopian Airlines flights to and from Eritrea will be suspended.It is understood that a letter written to the regional manager of Ethiopian Airlines stated: "Please note that as of September 30, 2024, all Ethiopian Airlines flights to Eritrea will be suspended."

It was signed by the Director General of the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Civil Aviation of Eritrea, and a public statement was issued stating that Ethiopian Airlines was required to be grounded due to alleged "malicious" business practices, including baggage theft, damage, long delays and unreasonable price increases.

The Eritrean government claims it has repeatedly and tirelessly called on Ethiopian Airlines to resolve these issues, but has yet to achieve results. It also advises all Ethiopian Airlines passengers traveling to Eritrea to adjust their flights and then choose other means of travel.

Ethiopian Airlines said it has confirmed receipt of a notice from the Eritrean government's civil aviation authority, but the specific reason has not yet been disclosed; it is seeking clarification from the Eritrean government and said it will resolve any issues amicably and promptly.

Before that, Ethiopian Airlines had 10 flights per week to Asmara, the capital of Eritrea; it is said that the Eritrean government recently asked Ethiopian Airlines to increase the 10 weekly flights to 15, until it recently announced the suspension of all flights in September.

In fact, Eritrea was originally part of Ethiopia, but Eritrea declared independence on May 24, 1993 after a referendum by the full name. Afterward, the two sides fought a war over border issues from 1998 to 2000, and it was not until 2018 that hostilities ended and border crossings were reopened. However, Ethiopia has since become a landlocked country and lost its port, which has put enormous economic pressure on Ethiopia, which relies on import and export trade.

However, at the same time, reports have pointed out that the incident may be related to Somalia, another neighboring country of Ethiopia. According to reports, earlier the Ethiopian Prime Minister signed a memorandum of understanding with the leader of the local government of Somaliland in northern Somalia in order to obtain the right to use a port in Somaliland, while also needing to recognize Somaliland as an independent state; however, the agreement has not yet been fully finalized, so Ethiopia has not yet obtained the right to use the port.

But Somalia has consistently accused Ethiopia of violating its national sovereignty by signing the memorandum of understanding with Somaliland, while the Ethiopian government has consistently avoided commenting on the signing of the memorandum of understanding. But since Ethiopia signed the memorandum of understanding with Somaliland, the Somali government has established close relations with Eritrea, and within this year, Somalia's defense minister has visited Eritrea three times.

Therefore, Ethiopia is currently not only plagued by ongoing internal conflict and war, but has also seen its relations with neighboring Eritrea and Somalia deteriorate. Even though the Ethiopian government has recently cooperated with the United Arab Emirates to strengthen trade between the two sides, export problems remain severe, and this has dealt a serious blow to Ethiopia's import and export business, including tourism and coffee.

Ethiopia's exports rely solely on the port of Djibouti, but recently, affected by the Red Sea crisis, ships have been greatly reduced. MSC, which accounts for 80% of the port of Djibouti's MSC business, has also announced the suspension of its operations at the port of Djibouti. Reports have already indicated severe pile-ups of Ethiopian coffee and other cargo at the port of Djibouti. Meanwhile, Eritrea and Somalia have tense relations with Ethiopia, so their ports cannot be used either, and Kenya's ports are far away. As a result, Ethiopia's exports of coffee and other goods will be severely obstructed, which is detrimental to the development of Ethiopia's coffee industry.