Eritrea warns Germany not to 'meddle' in region's affairs

The Eritrean government has warned Germany to "refrain from meddling" in Africa's regional affairs after the country's top diplomat criticised Eritrea's human rights record.

In a statement titled "Germany's cynical stance," issued on Saturday, the East African nation responded to comments German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas made earlier this month.

"We call on the German government to refrain from meddling in the affairs of the Horn of Africa," a statement from the Ministry of Information said.

"The trite and distorted narrative unfortunately reflects the hostile stance that the German government has held against Eritrea for a long time now, as well as its perspectives on the unfolding rapprochement between Eritrea and Ethiopia," the statement said.

In July, Ethiopia and Eritrea signed a peace agreement that formally ended a two-decade stand-off and restored diplomatic relations. The two countries had cut all ties after a 1998-2000 border war that claimed the lives of tens of thousands of people.

The diplomatic thaw began in June when, under a new reformist leader, Ethiopia said it would fully accept the terms of a previously-rejected peace agreement.

In an address to the Bundestag on October 12, Maas cautioned that the historic peace agreement between the two countries had not led to human rights reforms in Eritrea as it had in Ethiopia.

"There's still no strategy to indicate how an orderly opening up within the country could look," he said, adding that Germany and its European partners are considering incentives "to help encourage Eritrea to finally break this logic which has resulted in major human rights violations."

Maas also criticised Eritrea's compulsory national service "as a key means of controlling society." Stability in the Horn of Africa could lead to the return of migrants who have left for reasons of oppression or lack of opportunity, he said.

This year alone, Germany has donated 200 million euros in humanitarian assistance to the region, Maas added.

Germany currently has about 75,000 asylum-seekers from Eritrea, with some 15,000 young Eritreans seeking asylum this year alone, Germany's Development Minister Gerd Mueller said during his recent trip to Ethiopia.