The African Union has initiated talks between the Ethiopian government and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front to bring peace in the Horn of Africa nation.
A statement from the AU indicated that the Chairperson of the African Union Commission Moussa Faki Mahamat announce the launch in South Africa of the first direct talks between the Government of the Federal Government of Ethiopia and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front,
The talks are part of the ongoing AU-led process to support the Parties find a political solution to the conflict in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia.
The Talks are facilitated by H.E. Olusegun Obasanjo, the AU High Representative for the Horn of Africa and former President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, along with former President Uhuru Kenyatta of the Republic of Kenya; and former Deputy President Dr Phumzile MlamboNgcuka of the Republic of South Africa.
Representatives of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the United Nations (UN) and the Government of the United States of America (USA) are participating as observers to the AU-led peace process.
Faki expressed his profound appreciation to President Cyril Ramaphosa and the Government of South Africa for graciously accepting to host the talks in the spirit of pan-African solidarity to find African solutions to African problems.
The Chairperson said he is encouraged by the early demonstration of commitment to peace by the Parties and to seek a lasting political solution to the conflict in the supreme interest of Ethiopia.
He reiterated the AU’s continued commitment to support the Parties in an Ethiopian-owned and AU-led process to silence the guns towards a united, stable, peaceful and resilient Ethiopia.