Ethiopia says it is unhappy with the US decision to suspend duty-free access to the East African country.
The Ethiopian Ministry of Commerce statement on Monday came after the Biden government on December 23rd ended Ethiopia’s selection for benefits under the Africa Development and Opportunities Act. The United States has expressed its disapproval of the war in the Tigray region.
“The Ethiopian government is unhappy with the US decision to exclude it from the privileged trade benefits,” said the ministry, which called on the US to reconsider its decision.
“Ethiopia is implementing various initiatives aimed at peace and stability, political consensus and economic development in addition to carrying out reforms in line with the long-standing relationship between the two countries,” the statement said.
The United States has cut off Ethiopia’s access to trade benefits despite calls from some U.S. lawmakers and Ethiopian lobby groups to urge the Biden government to give the country more time to comply with U.S. demands.
“The decision against the African nation was taken because of its failure to end almost a year of war in the Tigray region that has led to ‘blatant human rights abuses,'” Biden said in a statement. The action also prevents Guinea and Mali from receiving the trade benefits from 1 January.
The Africa Growth and Opportunity Act provides sub-Saharan Africa with tax-free access to the United States, provided it meets certain requirements, including the removal of barriers to US trade and investment and progress toward political pluralism.
The United States and the United Nations say Ethiopian authorities have blocked trucks from delivering food and other aid to Tigray, which they desperately need. Dozens of people have died of starvation, the Associated Press reported.
In September, Biden warned that his government would impose sanctions if Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed did not take steps to end the war in Tigray and elsewhere.
On November 3, the Ethiopian Foreign Ministry described the move as “wrong” and “unjustified intimidation” and said the decision could affect the livelihoods of more than 200,000 low-income Ethiopians working for companies benefiting from privileged commercial access. .
Some Ethiopian companies are already showing signs of decline in their export activities.
“Many companies are already leaving and we do not know what will happen next,” Addis Ababa, a textile worker in Hawassa Industrial Park, about 270 kilometers (168 miles) south of the capital, told the AP by telephone.
Ethiopia has had one of Africa’s fastest growing economies in recent years, but the war in Tigray has diminished that momentum.
abcnews.com
Follow Skai.gr on Google News
and be the first to know all the news
.
