Summary: President Isaias Afwerki Special Interview with Cairo News Channel

by Adulis Faris

Foreign Interference and Horn of Africa Issues

• President Isaias Afwerki of Eritrea stressed that foreign envoys are the cause of problems and complications in the region. He asserted that neighbouring countries should work to find local solutions away from any external intervention.
• He affirmed that the countries of the Horn of Africa are capable of solving their problems and ensuring regional stability and integration if they are given the space and adopt conscious approaches to address local issues.

Red Sea Security and Military Bases

• President Isaias believes that the international Red Sea waterway is a global interest, and the regional countries are responsible for securing it better than any external party.
• He emphasized that neighboring countries like Somalia, Yemen, Sudan, and Saudi Arabia are capable of protecting their own shores and do not need foreign bases or forces. He considers foreign alternatives as allowing the passage of special interests at the expense of the region’s people.
• He stated that any country allowing military bases is inviting “cause for problems” for the region’s people and the waterway, and that no country needs an external force to secure the passage.
• He indicated that Eritrea’s and Egypt’s visions are 100% aligned on this matter, and that this is not a choice for governments but a necessity for the people of the region.

The Situation in Sudan

• President Isaias Afwerki considered the fundamental problem in Sudan not to be secondary issues like El Fasher, but that “Sudan is targeted” by regional and global powers due to external ambitions seeking to disrupt stability.
• He clarified that the instability of Sudan means the instability of the Red Sea, the Horn of Africa, and Africa in general.
• He believes the solution lies in the removal of foreign hands and conspiracies from Sudan, and that the awareness of the Sudanese people and regional countries of these conspiracies will accelerate regional cooperation to resolve the problem.

The Role of Africa and the African Union

• President Isaias described the African continent has “big challenges” and is a “marginalized continent” that has become a field for external interventions and the looting of resources, stating that its peoples are living in an “era of modern slavery”.
• He clearly criticized the role of the African Union, asserting that in reality “there is no African Union” and that it has failed to rise to the level of the challenges.
• He placed the primary responsibility for the failure to solve problems on the African governments and states themselves, not the African Union.
• He affirmed that Eritrea contributes what it can towards the goal of “liberating the Africa from neocolonialism and modern slavery”.