Ethiopian Prime Minister  Meets French President  Macron In Paris 

Borkena

Toronto – The Office of the Prime Minister on Thursday announced that PM Abiy has led a high level delegation to Paris, France, where he met with Emanul Macron. The two leaders met in December 2024 in Addis Ababa. 

An official welcome ceremony was organized at the Musée de l’Armée for PM Abiy in Paris. 

A two line update the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia shared on its social media page described the purpose as a “working visit” without revealing details. 

Later, the Prime Minister wrote on his social media page indicating that his trip aims to strengthen relations between the two countries. 

He wrote : 

“It’s always a pleasure to engage in positive discussions with President Emmanuel Macron on a wide range of issues that strengthen our cooperation and partnership. I appreciate the warm hospitality extended and the fruitful conversations, following up on our last meeting in Addis Ababa in December 2024. While our collaboration spans many vital areas, enhancing commercial ties remains among the central priorities.”

However, some commentators on Ethiopian politics tend to think that Abiy Ahmed’s recent trip abroad, including the clandestine one, represent a “desperate attempt to secure resources – weaponry, ammunition, and potentially financial aid – to bolster his flagging regime.”

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government has been mired in security, political and even economic crisis despite narratives of “growing economy.” His government is increasingly under internal and external pressures. 

The “law enforcement operation”  he ordered in August 2023 in the Amhara region of Ethiopia with a plan to “complete within a few weeks,” turned out to be a full blown and unending war. It is still underway. In the Oromia region, the ethnic Oromo militant group has been battling his government for over six years now – draining resources and exhausting the army. 

Economically, this government has been struggling to pay salaries. Teachers in Southern Ethiopia were unable to get paid for  more than three months. The macro-economic reform introduced in August 2024, including market-based forex, aggravated the inflation (despite recent claim that it has decreased ) and cost of living making life unbearable even for professional civil servants.  Ethiopiapian Health Care Professionals, for example, have been demanding a livable wage for more than four weeks before they launched a full strike this week.  And there is a possibility, based on views many are sharing on social media, that the rest of the public servants may follow suit. 

Regionally, relations with Eritrea are at a breaking point with some anticipating “inevitable war” soon. Eritrea has found a new alliance in the north with one faction of TPLF under Debretsion Gebremicael – which is said to have hundreds of thousands of armed forces. 

Which part of the problem will France help to tackle remains to be seen.   There are also reports that Abiy will also be travelling to the UK and Italy. 

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