African draft for solving the Ethiopian - Eritrean conflict

Eritrea agreed to a draft presented by the Organization of African Unity that aims at ending its border conflict with Ethiopia.

The Eritrean government said it is ready to accept an agreement formula for a cease fire and withdrawing its armed forces.

The Eritrean Foreign Ministry said in a press release that the Ertirean acceptance "observed" that not taking territories by force applies to both sides in the conflict, redeployment does not "prejudge the status [of] the territories concerned," undoing damage caused by the fighting includes a need for compensating deportees, and demarcation of borders should be carried out "expeditiously."

"On the basis of this understanding and in the interests of peace," Eritrea accepted the agreement, Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki said.

Eritrea and Ethiopia accuse each other of attacking one another's land.

The presidents of the two countries participated in the summit of the Organization of African Unity, which concluded yesterday.

The organization made previous efforts to end the conflict between the two countries, which has left thousands of victims in the two countries and displaced nearly 600,000 persons from the border area.