This comes from a history of people who have not been conquered ever. We come from that background and culture. Ethiopia's status as the one African kingdom which managed to avoid the European carve-up of the late 19th century is a continuing source of national pride. This time, the enemy is not a conquering empire but a fledgling nation of three million people to Ethiopia's 60-million. And, in Badme at any rate, the Ethiopians are once again in control of the disputed village.
Some sources say they have gone further, making a pre-emptive push deep into Eritrean territory.
As we approach Badme village there is no sense that we are anywhere near a front line, despite most maps putting the settlement almost on the border. A vine, heavy with green squash, winds around the thatched roof of one house. Soldiers loiter and smoke in the street, lounge in the shade of the low buildings. A brown goat peers into an abandoned home. From the gloomy interior a white goat stares back.