ADDIS ABABA – On Tuesday, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had a meeting with Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and other officials with a focus on disputes between Ethiopia and U.S. ally Egypt along with matters of security and investments.
Pompeo and his wife were welcomed by the Ethiopian reformist leader on their arrival, only to go for lunch a little later.
The talks are to focus on matters of security concerns before the elections in Ethiopia this year. Also to be discussed are the investment opportunities in Ethiopia as Abiy Ahmed opens up the economy of the country to foreign investments and the dispute which the U.S. has been trying to mediate between Egypt and Ethiopia regarding the Blue Nile hydropower dam.
Ethiopia has long been an ally of the United States but the difficulty of doing business in its sluggish and bureaucratic economy has discouraged foreign investment.
Abiy plans to liberalise the telecoms and banking sectors but this year he is likely to be occupied with elections scheduled for Aug. 29.
His reforms have unleashed simmering ethnic and political tensions at home as regional powerbrokers jockey for position. More than 2 million of Ethiopia’s 109 million citizens have been displaced, according to the United Nations.
Pompeo is on the second leg of a tour that has already taken him to Germany, Senegal and Angola. His visit comes as some African governments are questioning U.S. President Donald Trump’s commitment to their continent.
(Photos syndicated via Reuters)
This story has been edited by BH staff and is published from a syndicated field.