Uhuru Withdraws from Ethiopia-Tigray Peace Talks in South Africa

Former President Uhuru Kenyatta will skip peace talks convened by the African Union on the Ethiopian conflict this weekend.

Kenyatta and former Nigerian president Olusegun Obasanjo were set to mediate peace talks between the Federal Government of Ethiopia and Tigray representatives in South Africa on Saturday but in a letter to African Union Chairman Mousa Faki Mahamat on Friday, Kenyatta said he will not attend the meeting due to a conflict in his schedule.

Kenyatta, who was appointed as Kenya’s peace envoy to the Horn of Africa and the Great Lakes region, also requested to be provided with “rules of engagement” for any future peace talks so as to aid in his preparations and participation.

“Regrettably, I wish to notify your good office that I will not be able to attend the AU-Convened Peace Talks scheduled for October 8, 2022 in South Africa owing to conflicts in my schedule,” Kenyatta said in the letter.

“However, in the interim and as you consider the possibility for another date for the peace talks, I would be grateful to receive further clarity on the structure and modalities of the talks, including but not limited to the rules of engagement for all the interlocutors invited. This clarification would greatly help in preparations for my engagement and participation.”

“Furthermore, as we discuss the agenda for the talks, it is my hope that among the most urgent issues high on that agenda will be the immediate and unconditional cessation of hostilities.”

Kenyatta added that the “silencing of the guns is particularly important in order to avail the right conditions for the consultations and negotiations while alleviating human suffering and allowing for continued access to humanitarian assistance.”

The Ethiopian government and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) have been fighting since November 2020, with the former accusing the rebel group of being terrorists.

Fighting has raged in northern Ethiopia since hostilities resumed on August 24th, with both sides accusing the other of firing first and breaking a March truce.