African body welcomes lifting of sanction on Eritrea

Chairman of the African Union commission Moussa Faki Mahamat on Thursday welcomed the UN Security Council resolution to lift the sanctions imposed on Eritrea.

The Security Council on Wednesday passed a resolution lifting the 9-year-old sanction on Eritrea for what it described as destabilizing activities in the Horn of Africa region.

"Yesterday's decision is a further step towards the consolidation of the recent positive developments in the Horn of Africa, marked by an improvement of bilateral relations between the countries of the region, as well as by a renewed determination to promote good neighborliness and foster regional cooperation," the African Union statement quoted Mahamat as saying.

He added that "these developments are a major contribution to the African Union drive towards silencing the guns by 2020 and advancing continental integration in the context of Agenda 2063 flagship projects."

He encouraged the regional leaders to sustain this momentum, by taking all steps required to address any outstanding issue in their relations and deepening their cooperation in the pursuit of the shared objective of peace and prosperity.

In July, Ethiopia asked the UN Security Council to lift the sanctions it imposed against Eritrea on the grounds that its northern neighbor has been improving relations with regional countries Somalia and Djibouti, with which Eritrea had maintained tense relations.

Frosty ties between the two neighbors thawed after Eritrean President Issaias Afeworki accepted an olive branch extended by Ethiopia's Prime Minister Abiy Ahmedthis year.