(L) Eritrea Ambassador to Nigeria,Mohammed Omaro, briefing newsmen on the UN Security Council sanctions imposed on the countr, with him is Habte Asfah, Consul in Abuja. Photo: NAN

By Ngozi Sams

Eritrea’s Ambassador to Nigeria, Mohammed Ali Omaro has condemned the recent decision of the United States of America government to place Nigeria and other 13 countries on its terror ‘watch list’.

Mr. Omaro, who described the US decision as unfair, said it appears the Americans did not do proper consultation before arriving at that decision.

“It is very unfair.We have to call a spade a spade, not a bigger spoon. What is happening? Who decided it and what is the reason for that decision? Now,

the latest news is that America included 14 countries in a list; not to prevent them from visiting America, but to be liable to hard checks. This is what we call double standard. Are all these countries hosting al-Qaeda? Hosting terrorists? It is the way of American administration’s thinking and that is the way they are. We hope they will change.” Mr. Omaro who, Wednesday, briefed journalists in Abuja on Eritrea’s reaction to the recent sanctions imposed on the country by the United Nations’ Security Council, said the United States of America has not always been fair in its dealings with African countries.

“The double standard policy of the US in the world at large, and in the Horn of Africa in particular, is the main cause of conflicts, instability and human sufferings,” he alleged, while also claiming that the US secretly masterminded the sanction placed on Eriteria by the global organisation.

Unhappy with the US He added, “The UN security council’s accusation against Eritrea of refusing to solve its border dispute with Djibouti is also a travesty. Eritrea has not occupied an inch of Djiboutian territory and does not have any claim over any Djibouti territory. It is in fact a fabricated crisis aimed at diverting Eritrea from its legal battle to reclaim its occupied territory by Ethiopia.

The whole issue is fabricated by the USA to cover its unlawful and unjustifiable full support for Ethiopia that is still occupying Eritrean Sovereign territories despite the final and binding verdict by the Eritrean-Ethiopian Boundary Commission, EEBC.” The EEBC was established by the UN in accordance with the Algiers agreement to delimit and demarcate the disputed border between Eritrea and Ethiopia.

On December 23, 2009, the UN Security Council imposed sanctions on Eritrea over what it said was the country’s role in Somalia and its refusal to withdraw troops following dispute with Djibouti. The sanctions include arms embargo, travel restrictions and freezing of assets.

The Ambassador condemned USA’s accusation of Eritrea’s role in supplying arms to Somali opposition as preposterous, in light of large naval and air force presence in the Red Sea and the naval forces roaming the Indian Ocean, adjacent to Somalia.

“How could Eritrea evade all these military bases and sophisticated surveillance system to deliver arms to Somali armed groups?” he asked.

Efforts by NEXT to reach US Ambassador to Nigeria, Robin Sanders proved abortive as she was said to be attending a meeting and cannot respond on the matter at the time.