Egypt expels Ethiopian diplomat in tit-for-tat response to Addis Ababa
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- Egyptian officials characterized Ethiopia's actions as "regrettable and unjustified."
- The diplomatic tit-for-tat comes following Ethiopia's decision to close its embassy in Asmara and expel 10 Eritrean diplomats.
Egypt has declared a senior Ethiopian diplomat persona non grata and ordered him to leave the country within 48 hours, in a direct retaliatory move following Ethiopia’s expulsion of an Egyptian diplomat from Addis Ababa.
According to a statement reported by state news agency MENA on Thursday, Egypt’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs designated Egazi Emelo Borougi, a counselor at the Ethiopian Embassy in Cairo, as persona non grata under the diplomatic principle of reciprocity.
The move comes after Ethiopian authorities previously ordered Egyptian diplomat Ahmed Moharam Ahmed Soliman in Addis Ababa to leave the country without publicly citing official cause, as stated by state-run Ethiopian News Agency (ENA) on Thursday.
A senior Egyptian official described Ethiopia’s action as "regrettable and unjustified," asserting that Cairo maintains a strict stance against interfering in the domestic affairs of other nations.
The official stressed that Egypt refrains from commenting on internal developments in Ethiopia or elsewhere, in full compliance with international law and the UN Charter.
"The Ethiopian side has a history of attributing its failures in managing its internal affairs and its successive crises to alleged foreign interference, thereby concealing its ongoing problems," the Egyptian official stated via MENA.
The diplomatic standoff with Cairo coincides with a broader regional escalation involving Addis Ababa. Earlier this week, Ethiopia ordered the closure of its embassy in the Eritrean capital of Asmara and declared 10 Eritrean diplomats persona non grata, prompting Asmara to sever diplomatic relations entirely.
