German Foreign Minister, Annalena Baerbock and French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna are set to visit Ethiopia on Thursday, the state media outlet Ethiopia News Agency disclosed on Tuesday.
The two foreign ministers are expected to arrive in Addis Ababa for a two day official visit, during which time they are expected to meet, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Demeke Mekonen and President Sahle-Work Zewde, according to ENA report.
ENA further reported the two foreign officials are also expected to lend further support to the November 2022 Pretoria peace agreement signed between the Ethiopian government and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF).
The Ethiopian government is also expected to raise the issue of resumption of direct budgetary support from the European Union (EU) during the two officials trip. Germany and France are the largest and second largest economies in Europe respectively.
The anticipated trip by the two European Foreign Ministers comes despite continuing tension between the EU and the Ethiopian government over a whole host of political issues. The Ethiopian government in particular has been opposed to European nations support to the International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia (ICHREE) which was formed in late 2021 and whose mandate was extended by a UN vote in October 2022.
