US removes sanctions on Eritrean Defense Forces, Treasury website shows

WASHINGTON, Sept 18 (Reuters) - ‌The Trump ​administration ​lifted sanctions on Eritrean Defense Forces and other entities in Eritrea on Friday in ‌a move analysts have said could boost US ⁠ties to the African nation given its strategic location along ‌the Red Sea shipping ‌route.

The move, announced in a notice posted on the Department of Treasury's website and welcomed by the ​Eritrean government, comes as the war in the Middle East has expanded, with additional attention on the ⁠Red Sea, where Eritrea's coastline is opposite Saudi Arabia.

Reuters previously reported ​that Republican US President Donald Trump's administration was planning to remove the sanctions, citing an ​internal government document.

Trump's Democratic predecessor ‌Joe Biden had imposed sanctions in 2021 against Eritrea's ruling party and military ⁠as well as senior Eritrean officials for their role in a war in neighboring Ethiopia, where Eritrean forces backed ⁠Ethiopian troops fighting regional authorities in the northern Tigray region.

Yemane ​Gebremeskel, Eritrea's information minister, told Reuters that the sanctions had caused incalculable damage to the country.

"The unilateral sanctions imposed by ‌the Biden Administration five years ago were not warranted by any metrics... In this ‌respect, we welcome the gesture and remedial measures ⁠by the Trump Administration," ‌he said.

(Reporting by ​Daphne Psaledakis and Giulia Paravicini; writing by Susan Heavey; Editing by Caitlin Webber and David ‌Gaffen)

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