Ethiopia–Qatar relations

Ethiopia-Qatar relations

Ethiopia	Qatar

Ethiopia–Qatar relations are foreign relations between Ethiopia and Qatar. As of 2008, neither country has resident embassies.

Relations

Ethiopia abruptly broke diplomatic ties with Qatar in April 2008, accusing "the output of its media outlets" of "direct and indirect assistance to terrorist organizations," according to an Ethiopian Foreign Ministry statement. The statement further alleged that "Qatar has left no stone unturned to cause harm to Ethiopia's national security".^[1] In an interview with Committee to Protect Journalists that November, Foreign Ministry spokesman Wahid Belay said the statement referred to the Al-Jazeera news channel based in Qatar, which had aired a critical series on the plight of civilians in the Ogaden, a part of the Somali Region.^[2] The Qatar Foreign Ministry responded with a statement in which they "expressed surprise" at Ethiopia's actions, denying the accusations, and "called on the Ethiopian Government to refrain from involving the State of Qatar in its rifts, recalling that the Ethiopian Government has previously made similar claims but the State of Qatar preferred not to reply out of the hope that the Ethiopian Government would stop such wrong behaviours."^[3]

Agreements

In 2005, the countries signed a technical and economic cooperation agreement. ^[4]

References

1. "Ethiopia breaks off diplomatic relations with Qatar". The New York Times. 21 April 2008. Retrieved 15 April 2015.
2. Committee to Protect Journalists, Attacks on the Press in 2008 - Ethiopia, 10 February 2009 (accessed 24 May 2009)
3. An official source statement that The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has expressed its surprise at the decision of the Ethiopian Foreign Ministry to sever diplomatic ties with the State of Qatar Foreign Ministry of Qatar website, undated statement (accessed 24 May 2009)
4. http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-18851079_ITM