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The Trump administration let sanctions on Eritrea’s ruling party and military expire, according to a Treasury Department statement on Friday. The Biden administration imposed the measures in 2021 over human rights abuses committed during the Tigray war in neighboring Ethiopia. The conflict, which ended the following year, claimed over 100,000 lives and contributed to famine in the region. Semafor reported in April on Egypt-brokered talks between Eritrea’s president and US President Donald Trump’s senior Africa advisor as Washington could normalize ties with Asmara. In May, Reuters reported the US planned to lift sanctions as a part of the rapprochement. Still, tensions between Ethiopia and Eritrea have grown this year, with Addis Ababa pressing for “Red Sea access” and both sides trading accusations of troop buildups and covert support for rival factions in regional conflicts. Red Sea powers are vying for port access and regional influence, even as Houthi attacks in Yemen threaten shipping through the nearby Bab el-Mandeb waterway.
document fetched 2026-09-22 02:54 · canonical https://semafor.com/article/09/21/2026/us-lifts-sanctions-on-eritrean-officials