Ethiopian media have published articles with headlines like this one: U.S. Advices TPLF To Capture Addis Ababa. The spokesperson of Tigray Peoples Liberation (TPLF), Getachew Reda, revealed that they are advised by the United States Government to leave Tigray expanding their invasion and capture the capital of Ethiopia, Addis Ababa.

If true, it would have been sensational. But it is not.

In reality Getachew Reda was explaining the pressure the Tigray Defence Forces had come about the way they behaved if – and if is the critical word – they took Addis Ababa.

Washington was not suggesting or encouraging the TDF to take Addis Ababa.

You can see his interview here.

Below is a translation of what Getachew said, with the article making the allegations below. Highlights added, otherwise verbatim.

Martin

The Superpowers, for instance, China, supports Abiy through various ways. On any platforms like the UN Security Council, when efforts are made to put sanctions on Abiy, they use their Veto power and protect him [on the pretext]  that the internal affairs of countries shouldn’t be intruded into. It is [however] very difficult to understand what the position of the [US] America is.

The Americans say we will put sanctions and put pressure on both of you and bring you peace [negotiations]. They take the position that Abiy is a dangerous person who is taking [the country] into a path of destruction. They wait a bit and say if the TPLF enters Addis Ababa, there would be a blood bath.

It is unknown from where all these fables come from. One thing is, the position of China is clear; I can understand [it]. It is Americans who have [reservations] ‘if you enter Addis Ababa’. Some European Countries also raise similar things. But then internally [unofficially] they say, ‘if you enter Addis Ababa, rather than you being alone and a problem occurs, it is better if you gather a few [parties] and enter’.

Now, some of the concerns of America and co is laughable and also takes into account petty commodity calculations. America’s [call] of “don’t enter Addis Ababa” is impractical. There are those who fear that what is claimed that Abiy started – the movement of selling the country, selling off property, selling the country’s wealth on a cheap price – would [be made to] stop.

On the other hand, they don’t want what they call “reform”, it is unknown what it is, what they call the reform agenda to stop [or] reverse back. Since there is also many [bad] picture that’s painted on TPLF and we have shortcomings in selling ourselves, because of that, there are forces which worry, ‘if they [TPLF] enter [Addis Ababa] they will be, like before, people who say no to everything and won’t accept anything’.

You can’t say there is uniform thinking inside America. Among the different departments of America there are what they call firewalls. There may be ideas which one [department] promotes that is different from the other.

Ultimately, they come together over the establishment’s governing thought, over America’s national interest. Therefore, if we say, ‘what is America’s national interest in this region?’ – they have the desire for a stable Ethiopia. If Ethiopia disintegrates, Kenya will be destabilized. Because most [of the people] will flee to Kenya. Some are going to immigrate Somalia.

Some are going to immigrate to Europe. So [countries such as] Italy have concerns that if chaos occurs in this country, immigrants that come through the Mediterranean or other way will flood our country. Those such as Spain [fear], ‘if Tigray happens to secede, similar to our Catalan may spread’. All are [absorbed] in their own [concerns].

There are forces some of [which have ideas that] makes you laugh; others are even senseless; there are also some which have ideas that seem reasonable to some extent. Some of them tell you, ‘it should be in a way that preserves the territorial integrity so that Ethiopia may not disintegrate’. In another way, they tell you ‘solve it peacefully’. In another way, they say to you, ‘Abiy was a good person; it was the Eritreans that are causing him difficulties’.

There is no such thing. Who invited Eritrea? Eritrea won’t begin invasion on its own.

They came by invitation. They had full involvement in the actual crime, so we should see it in that level. If individuals are to be made accountable, first and foremost, Abiy should be the one for getting [Ethiopia’s] sovereignty violated.  So those they call westerners are ones who have hodgepodge of ideas.

Now, when you think, ‘what is the desire of America?’, in my opinion, they don’t want TPLF to enter [Addis Ababa] and become the one omnipotent power.

Even if we tell them, ‘we don’t have to grab government power’, no one is believing us. But what do they want [from us]? ‘they want us to be the police or the guard that keep watch for Oromo and Amhara or Amhara and someone else not to fight each other so as Ethiopia may not disintegrate.  We don’t want Oromo and Amhara or Oromo and someone else or Amhara and someone else to eat each other. We have the desire for everything to be concluded, for the continued interest of Tigray to be secured, in a manner in which the country remains stable.

[Tigray] wants its  neighbors to continue in a stable manner.

Our people too have similar desire. Therefore we want to do our tasks in a manner which guarantees that. They want us to do guard’s duty for them in a cheap way. Some of them [when they] discuss with us say, ‘which ones should be [appointed] after Abiy’ and keep picking up individuals [list]. Some of them make you sad. The person that told you, ‘don’t enter Addis Ababa’ come and say, ‘would you have reservations if it is this person and that person?’

So what I want to tell you is, you can’t say their pressure isn’t there on any of our activities. I mean, when Emirates is arming Abiy, their not stopping it even they could have done so, will have effect one way or another on our activities. They are releasing statements that say, ‘both of you have committed crimes’ to make sure there is equivalence on crimes committed, what you call bothsidesism. They [release statements] all parties are accountable. They know who is responsible for almost 100 percent of the crime; yet they say ‘both sides’. They say, ‘the sanction also includes TPLF’. On whom are they going to impose sanctions? What did we do [to get it]? Nothing is known [about that]. So if we have undertaken the recent movement [adjustment] because we heard the advice of these people [US & co], we have abandoned Tigray’s agenda.

This is dangerous. So even when you become pragmatic, America hasn’t done a dime of support. Well psychologically, they have given much support on diplomatic platforms that serves as encouragement for our society. The Americans did a lot in exposing the crimes committed on Tigray. So they should be thanked. But beyond that, politically, if I were to turn back just because those forces that are contributing to prolong, by days, weeks or a few months, the lifespan of the regime that ought to be removed, told me to turn back, what am I going to benefit from it?

If I turn back because a person, which doesn’t have a spec of contribution for the existence of the people of Tigray, advised me, ultimately, I have abandoned my purpose. Even some of the people who are very close to us think like that. They tell you, ‘you returned because they pointed it and said, ‘return now!’ [laughs]. It should be taken as a political decision that takes into account military necessity. Politically in the sense, the central command gives political decision.  War is itself politics in the first place. So, ‘In which direction should we take it’? It is as I have said. Where can you hammer your enemy better? Is Debarik better? Or Debre Tabor? Or Wegel Tena? Or Semera? Where can you hammer it? This is the military logic.

The decision to make a pullback by taking into account this [military situation] is a political decision. Outside of that there is no such thing as America’s pressure or Italy’s pressure. Keeping [recognizing] the support they gave on the diplomatic [aspect] as it is, they themselves are confused and [don’t know] what they believe.

If you were to meet two representatives of America within two minutes, they have different positions. So America is a country which is in confusion regarding us. But on top of that, the defamation that was done on TPLF by the enemy and the shortcoming that’s prevalent in the manner in which we promote or market ourselves should be taken into account [and hence] it is clear that the whole world has concerns of ‘if TPLF enter [Addis Ababa], something [bad] may happen’. We admit that there are ideas of such level. These ideas will have an influence on our continuing diplomatic works: ‘What should be our next focus?’ ‘How can we do things that ease these guys?’ However, I don’t believe it has any meaningful [impact] on our military works. And it doesn’t.

Source: New Business Ethiopia

U.S. Advices TPLF To Capture Addis Ababa

PoliticsBEHAK

The spokesperson of Tigray Peoples Liberation (TPLF), Getachew Reda, revealed that they are advised by the United States Government to leave Tigray expanding their invasion and capture the capital of Ethiopia, Addis Ababa.

Getachew said, “The Americans confuse us when they impose sanctions on us and the Government of Ethiopia. We were planning to negotiate trusting them (the Americans)” “…They (the American Government) are the one who advised us to leave Tigray and capture Addis Ababa,” he told the journalist on Tigray TV yesterday commenting about TPLF relations with the United Sates and the Western countries.



The ongoing war between the TPLF and the Government of Ethiopia has begun on November 3, 2020 when the former attacked Ethiopian National Defense Force northern command based in Tigray region.

Even though some people close to the Government of Ethiopia have been claiming that the United States has told TPLF to start the war, it has been supporting the TPLF fighters by providing satellite imagery, phones, and accessories with humanitarian aid, this is the first time TPLF has admitted taking assignment from the United States to change regime in Ethiopia at any cost.

As latter admitted by TPLF officials on Tigray TV the attack was launched to secure the heavy artilleries and advance to Addis Ababa to overthrow Prime Minister of Ethiopia Abiy Ahmed.

Meanwhile, within about one month time the Ethiopian troops along with militias from different parts of the country and support of Eritrean forces, many TPLF core leaders are killed while others are captured hiding in caves in the mountainous region of Tigray.

Following the November treasonous act by the TPLF and related massacres the rebels have committed on the civilians, the Ethiopian Parliament has designated the Front as a terrorist group.

Now many Ethiopians portray TPLF as a puppet of the Western countries, the United States, and Egypt, established to destabilize Ethiopia using the people from Tigray ethnic group as a cover and shield.
One of the members of the leaders of the loyal opposition party in Tigray region recently said that during the about one year war, over 450,000 people mainly youth from Tigray ethnic group have lost their lives because of the human wave war strategy of TPLF.



Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, who led the war on the frontline from November 22, 2021 till December 8, 2021, also recently indicated that thousands of youth from Tigray are dying in the battlefields and urged mothers of Tigray ethnic group to ask the TPLF where it has taken their children.

The TPLF has used teenagers for the war giving them guns as shown in the reports of the Western media such as, The New York Times, which glorified the act of the TPLF instead of condemning the globally forbidden act of recruiting child soldier.

The attempt of TPLF fighters to control Addis Ababa has failed after Prime Minister Abiy began leading the army on the frontline starting November 22, 2021. Since then, the rebels have lost over two dozen towns in Amhara and Afar regions, where they have been committing atrocities that amount to war crimes.

The joint investigation by the United Nations Human Rights Commission and the independent Ethiopian Human Rights Commission revealed that the TPLF has massacred hundreds of ethnic Amhara civilians at Maikadra.

TPLF came to power in Ethiopia in 1991 through arms struggle with the help the Western countries including the United States, which were at odds with the Socialist regime of Mengistu Hailemariam. The rebels were also using Sudan and Egypt as their base and got financial and logistics support.

TPLF lost its dominance in Ethiopian politics unexpectedly in April 2018 when the TPLF dominated ruling coalition elected Abiy Ahmed as its leader following the popular protests that forced the former Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn to resign.



In what is described as a desperate move, TPLF has launched a military attack on Ethiopian Government hopping to comeback again to power with arms as it succeeds during the cold war era.

Not long after the war began the United States and some Western countries began activating their propaganda machines against the Government of Ethiopia. The United Sates has also announced several sanctions on the Government of Ethiopia and Eritrea including banning the duty-free export scheme granted by the U.S. to African countries known as, Africa Growth Opportunity Act (AGOA), among others.

Favoring their strong partner in the continent, Egypt, the United States and its allies have also tabled the issue of the Great Ethiopian Renaissance Dam at the UN Security council about a dozen times.
Egypt, which has a deal to sell the water of the Abbay River of Ethiopia to Israel and Arab countries, and the neighboring Sudan have been opposing Ethiopia’s right to utilize Abbay River, which contributes 86 percent of the water flowing to the Nile, the longest river in the world.

At one point before the former President of the United States, Donald Trump has said because Ethiopia refused to accept a deal he drafted to be signed along with Sudan and Egypt, “Egypt will blow the dam”.
The comment made by President Trump, who at one point also called African countries “shithole” nations, is considered by millions of angry Ethiopians as part of the continuation of White supremacy over the black people and Africans.

To counter the ongoing pressure of the United States and its allies on Ethiopia and Eritrea, thousands of Ethiopians and Eritreans in the diaspora have launched a popular #NoMore movement. The movement has now getting momentum reaching many African countries, who are saying no more to neo-colonialism.