Ethiopia has called on the international community to promote inclusive cooperation regarding the Red Sea and Indian Ocean. This appeal came during the recent BRICS meeting in Brazil.

Leulseged Tadese, Ethiopia’s Ambassador to Brazil, raised this concern at the BRICS meeting of deputy foreign ministers and special envoys on the Middle East and North Africa held between March 27-28, 2025, in Brasilia.

The Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs quoted Ambassador Tadese saying, “Ethiopia is the most populous country on the African Shore of the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean.” He emphasized that inclusive international cooperation over these waters serves the global community’s interests.

Egypt, a BRICS member, has coastline on the Red Sea. Saudi Arabia has been invited to join BRICS but has not yet responded. Recently, Eritrean and Egyptian authorities met in Cairo, with the Red Sea being one of the topics discussed. Egypt maintains that only countries with coastlines on the Red Sea should be involved in Red Sea issues.

The Red Sea is strategically important, with more than 10 percent of global trade passing through its waters. It connects economies across Europe, North Africa, and parts of Asia. Several countries, including the US, France, Japan, China, the UAE, and Turkey, maintain military bases in the region.

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed previously raised this topic when meeting with party officials in October 2023, after which relations between Ethiopia and Eritrea began to deteriorate. Ethiopia lost its access to the Red Sea when Eritrea seceded in 1993. There has been ongoing resentment in Ethiopia about the legality of this process that left the country landlocked.

The late Ethiopian leader Meles Zenawi had to suppress opposition over Ethiopia’s landlocked status and ethnic politics. While there is simmering resentment about sea access, Ethiopians currently appear reluctant to support Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s efforts to pursue Red Sea access.