On September 17, US President Joe Biden issued an executive order authorizing new sanctions on individuals and organizations involved in the escalating conflict in Ethiopia. Last week, Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa Jeffrey Feltman said that Washington "is prepared to pursue" the sanctions, "targeting all parties implicated."
“We are confident that the imposition of illegal unilateral sanctions, threats to use them and refusal to provide economic assistance are highly counterproductive and will only lead to the worsening of the situation of ordinary people who are already suffering, and by no means it will lead to reconciliation,” Evstigneeva said on Monday.
Northern Ethiopia has been engulfed by the internal conflict since October of last year, when the central government accused the PNLF of attacking a military base and launched a counter operation in Tigray. The hostilities have been going on since despite a June ceasefire.
More than 1,000 people have assembled in front of the White House on Monday, including families with children and elderly individuals, to have their voices heard in support of Ethiopia’s democratically-elected government and the country’s unity and territorial integrity as well as against US-encouraged rebel forces.