The executive secretary of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development has welcomed the UN Security Council's unanimous decision to lift the nine-year sanctions against Eritrea.
Ambassador Mahboub Maalim also congratulated IGAD leaders and Eritrea for the efforts that helped UNSC to lift the sanctions.
"The historic normalisation of the relations between Ethiopia and Eritrea that ended the no-war no-peace situation between the two sisterly countries, is going to have a very positive ramification in the region in terms of cooperation and also towards peace, security and stability," Maalim said in a press release on Friday.
The UNSC on
Wednesday
voted to lift sanctions against Eritrea after nearly a decade.
The targeted sanctions effected in
December 2009 blocked arms sales to and from Eritrea, placed travel restrictions on senior government and military officials, and froze the assets of Eritreans found to support armed opposition groups, violate the comprehensive arms embargo, or commit other offenses specified in the resolution.
In retaliation, Eritrea
blocked UN agencies from accessing the country, arguing the punitive sanctions were “illegal” and “immoral.”
"The cooperation agreement between Ethiopia, Eritrea and Somalia and the initiatives to finalise the pending issues between Eritrea and Djibouti are the key achievements marking genuine political commitment for regional integration," said Ambassador Maalim said.
In July, Ethiopia submitted a request to the UN to lift the sanctions.
Returning from his Asmara historic visit on Monday, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed gave a letter to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres in Addis Ababa