Eritrea dismisses U.S. charge it destabilizes Somalia

[Eugene]

Source: Reuters

Eritrea dismisses U.S. charge it destabilizes Somalia

By Jack Kimball
Tue Apr 10, 4:38 AM ET

ASMARA (Reuters) - Eritrea dismissed on Tuesday allegations
by the top U.S. diplomat on Africa, Assistant Secretary of
State Jendayi Frazer, that it was trying to destabilize
Somalia as a way of hurting its arch foe Ethiopia.

"The Eritrean government is not disposed to reply to such a
statement by an amateur diplomat that does not reflect the
U.S. administration's official stance," a statement posted
on the government Web site said.

Frazer met members of Somalia's Ethiopian-backed interim
government on Saturday and urged them to open the political
process to all Somalis who renounced violence and extremism.

-snip-

Eritrea also said it had held talks with a former leader of
Somalia's Islamists, ousted late last year in a swift offensive
by Ethiopian and Somali government forces.

Asmara said in a separate statement on its www.shabait.com
Web site that Sheikh Sharif Ahmed told Eritrean President
Isaias Afwerki that Somalis would never submit to Ethiopian
"invaders."

-snip-

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070410/ts_nm/somalia_conflict_eritrea_dc_1

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Divisive conspiracy of external forces...doomed to failure - Eritrea Ministry of Information