Debate: Situation in Tigray, Ethiopia
Date: TUESDAY, 6 JULY 2021
Speaker: Janez Lenarčič
Language: EN

This famine is entirely man—made and is a disgrace to those who are responsible for it. To avoid the loss of thousands of lives, urgent humanitarian assistance must be delivered now. However, after the declaration of the recent unilateral ceasefire by the Ethiopian authorities, Tigray once again has been cut from the external world. Its regional borders have been closed. Essential infrastructure for supply delivery has been damaged. There is an embargo on flights to Tigray. Internet and telecommunications have been cut. Telecommunication outlets that were essential to humanitarian operators have been confiscated. Humanitarians are prevented from entering Tigray and from delivering much—needed assistance.  The voices of millions are being silenced. It is not a ceasefire: it is a siege, and starvation is used as a weapon of war.  Unspeakable atrocities continue also to be reported, with credible allegations of serious violations of international humanitarian law, human rights law and international refugee law. These include armed forces subjecting women and girls to sexual violence and rape, extrajudicial killings of civilians, starvation used as a method of war, deportation of Eritrean refugees back to Eritrea, looting and the deliberate destruction of livelihoods like crops and livestock. Deliberate denial of humanitarian actions by armed forces, forced relocation and destruction and looting of health facilities. What has been happening may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity.  Since the beginning of the crisis, with High Representative Borrell we have issued a number of statements on the situation in Ethiopia. I was myself in Addis in December and then again in April, and we are in contact with all our partners on the ground. We continue to call for additional efforts by all parties to cease hostilities, protect civilians and provide unfettered humanitarian access to avert a major humanitarian catastrophe. And Eritrean troops must withdraw from all of Tigray.  To avoid a humanitarian catastrophe, to preserve core EU values, we must act directly and indirectly, quickly and robustly. I will participate with High Representative Borrell and Commissioner Urpilainen in the next Foreign Affairs Council to this end. I will appeal for a consensus amongst our Member States in line with our consistent efforts to reach a concerted approach over the last months.  Our priorities are very clear. First, we need to engage with the parties to the conflict and agree on the mechanism to facilitate and secure aid operations in areas controlled by the Tigrayan forces. Ethiopian authorities notably shall be reminded that impartial humanitarian activities do not constitute in any way support to the enemy or to terrorism. Tigray’s borders must be opened to humanitarian relief operations. Relief actors need to be able to carry out their work independently, freely and in safety at all times.  Second, the protection of civilians caught in the Tigray conflict is at the heart of our preoccupations. We must not tolerate these serious violations of human rights, international refugee and humanitarian law. I am strongly convinced that this is an existential question for our common foreign policy. The EU continues to support civilians affected by the conflict in Ethiopia and beyond through our humanitarian response efforts. Together with our Member States, we have mobilised almost EUR 118 million in assistance to Ethiopian refugees living in neighbouring Sudan. My colleague, Commissioner Urpilainen, has also acted swiftly by deciding to postpone budget support disbursements last December, and she is exploring further options on the way ahead. It is clear that the conditions that we have spelled out in a clear way need to be fulfilled before we can resume our financing and programming of our cooperation assistance.  The European Union has also called upon neighbouring leaders and like—minded partners to step up their efforts in support of the Tigrayan people and to engage more actively to find a solution to the conflict. We support the joint investigation by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Ethiopian Commission for Human Rights. We are ready to take concrete steps with international partners in order to achieve an end to hostilities in Tigray and the resumption of a national dialogue. This will be necessary if we are to see a permanent ceasefire to the conflict and find a long—lasting solution to the situation in Ethiopia.  In conclusion, I wish to thank you for having facilitated this important debate, and I am looking forward to hearing your views and opinions.