Ethiopian diaspora supporters of Ethiopia’s military Russian alliance wasted no time in launching a propaganda campaign to justify the invasion and destruction underway in Ukraine. The US not for profit People to People is disseminating an argument mirroring Russian leader, Putin’s claim, that the invasion is justified due to shared heritage and dominance history. Founder and P2P President Enawgaw Mehari started the organization in 1999 to improve relations with professionals internationally and help diaspora organize to help Ethiopia. Now it appears this has transformed to an organization committed to the politics of supporting Abiy Ahmed. These claims interestingly mirror the Amhara expansionist and dominance false rational used by Abiy Ahmed supporters to eradicate ethnic identity in Ethiopia. This is proof positive of the Russian influence underway in Ethiopia.
Just yesterday Russian members of the Russian Parliament met with Ethiopian government members of the Ethiopian Parliament to discuss “mutual security”, “technology use”, and other issues. The new alliance is of concern because Russia has been seeking a place near the Red Sea which would give it a strategic base to harbor influence. The increased adversarial nature between NATO and the Russian Federation makes this a priority. As Ethiopia has now moved away from a clearly friendly status with NATO members most of whom now have placed an embargo on arms sales on Ethiopia given the violations of human rights committed in Tigray.