Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his (a) foreign counterparts and (b) cabinet colleagues on recent reports of border clashes between Ethiopia and Eritrea.

We are concerned over recent reports of fighting between Ethiopian and Eritrean forces along the border near Tsorena. I made a statement on 16 June calling on both countries to exercise restraint and to adhere to the terms of the Algiers Agreement. We have also made clear to Ethiopia and Eritrea that they should engage in meaningful political discourse to seek a resolution to the ongoing border issues. Officials have discussed the clashes with our partners in Europe and at the UN, many of whom share our concerns and have made similar calls for restraint.