by @Dahlakib
The article “Recognizing Somaliland: Israel’s Return to the Red Sea” attempts to frame Israel’s growing interest in the Red Sea as a strategic development with regional implications. While such geopolitical speculation may appeal to policy circles, it becomes misleading when Eritrea is casually inserted into the narrative as a potential or implied host of Israeli military facilities.
Let us be clear: Eritrea has never hosted a foreign military base, Israeli or otherwise. Repeating this allegation does not make it true; it merely keeps alive a long-running disinformation campaign aimed at forcing Eritrea into an “alignment” box it has consistently rejected.
This narrative is not new. More than a decade ago, an Al Jazeera journalist directly confronted President Isaias Afwerki with similar claims, alleging the presence of Israeli and Iranian military personnel in Eritrea. The President dismissed the claim outright, pointing out its absurdity. The idea that rival powers, openly hostile to one another, could operate side by side on Eritrean soil defies logic, intelligence, and basic common sense.
President Isaias Afwerki stated plainly that Eritrea is not for sale, not to the United States, not to Israel, not to Iran, and not to any external power. This position has been consistent, public, and unwavering. Eritrea’s foreign policy is grounded in sovereignty and independence, shaped by a hard-won liberation struggle and reinforced by decades of external pressure, sanctions, and misinformation.
Even the Washington Institute article itself stops short of presenting evidence. It references past “claims” and speculation but admits there are no permanent Israeli bases in Eritrea. That distinction matters. Yet many commentators deliberately blur it, transforming conjecture into alleged fact for political convenience.
Such narratives are not analytical; they are instrumental. They exist to justify pressure, sanctions, and geopolitical manipulation. Eritrea, however, has repeatedly demonstrated that it does not operate as a proxy state. It does not rent its sovereignty. It does not trade independence for favor.
If serious analysis is the goal, then facts must matter. Assertions must be supported by evidence. And sovereign nations must be judged by their actual policies, not by recycled talking points or think-tank speculation.
The truth remains unchanged: Eritrea stands independent, unaligned, and unwilling to serve as a military platform for any power.
Sources & References:
- Washington Institute article:
- President Isaias Afwerki – Al Jazeera Interview (2010, full video):
- Transcript & analysis of the interview:
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