As Joe Biden takes over the presidency of the United States, Ethiopia says it is hoping for a much warmer relationship with Washington than it has had during the administration of Donald Trump.
The US and Ethiopia have been involved in several diplomatic rows – including over the Great Ethiopian Renaissance Dam that Ethiopia is constructing on the River Nile.
Talks facilitated by the United States in 2019 between Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan over the operation of Ethiopia’s 6000MW dam on the river Nile hit a snag when Addis pulled out.
It blamed President Trump’s administration for failing to be neutral in the talks and opted for an African Union process, which is currently being led by South Africa.
In August last year, President Trump pulled 130 million dollars in aid to Ethiopia. Then in October, President Trump angered Addis Ababa by suggesting Egypt might blow up Ethiopia’s dam.
Addis Ababa is now hoping for a warmer relationship under President Biden.
Ethiopia’s Foreign Affairs Ministry Spokesperson, Dina Mufti says, “There was a big misunderstanding by Trump about the situation, especially about the dam, and he was misbriefed. We think he didn’t get the right briefings by his aides now I think the Biden administration will rectify all those anomalies This is what we hope.”
Some citizens here hope the Biden administration will mirror Barack Obama’s tenure when many African countries felt they enjoyed respectful relations with the US.
The incoming administration of the Biden administration has already expressed concern over what it called atrocities in Ethiopia’s northern region.
But Ethiopia – whose soldiers serve in peacekeeping missions in South Sudan and Somalia – remains a strategic ally for the United States, especially in stabilizing security in the Horn of Africa.
The US has mobilised over $37 million to support Ethiopia’s electoral Board to organise elections and trade between the two countries whose total value stood at over 1.8 billion dollars by 2018.
