Al Mariam’s Voice of America Interview (Amharic) on Global Peace Index, June 7, 2017

Author’s Note: In what I expect will be periodic commentaries on U.S. policy in Africa, I aim to offer unorthodox, paradigm changing, thought-provoking and controversial policy recommendations and prescriptions to the Trump Administration in its Africa, and particularly Ethiopia, policy. I expect to develop the core theses herein at great lengths in my future commentaries….

“The very idea of negotiating with the TPLF is simply laughable. It is like hyenas negotiating with antelopes about dinner. Zero sum negotiation game. Total win for hyenas, total loss for antelopes. As I argued in my 2009 commentary, for the TPLF negotiation means playing a “zero-sum game”. They win all the time, everybody else loses…

  Is the Biden administration a “friend” of Ethiopia? Following the US-Africa Summit last month, the million dollar question is whether Ethiopia and the US have kissed and made up. Some Ethiopians suggest bilateral relations have turned a corner with the ceasefire agreement and US-Ethiopia relations will soon be in an upswing. Others cautiously note recent…

[UPDATE 11/23/21]: On November 23, 2021, the U.S. Embassy in Addis Ababa issued a warning of terrorist attacks in Addis Ababa and warned Americans to avoid places “frequented by foreigners.” If any terrorist actions take place, the U.S. will be solely responsible. The U.S. would not have issued such a warning unless it had credible…

Author’s Note: This commentary is the third installment in an ongoing series opposing the lobbying efforts of the Praetorian regime in Ethiopia which rules by a declaration of emergency. For years and particularly over the past month, I have strongly argued to the Trump administration to review U.S. foreign aid programs in Ethiopia and Africa….