Background
On May 23, 2021, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, announced visa sanctions against Ethiopian and Eritrean government officials and other individuals who are “… responsible for or complicit in undermining the resolution of the crisis in Tigray.” The State Department press statement also promulgated that the Biden administration has “imposed wide-ranging restrictions on economic and security assistance to Ethiopia and will bring our defense trade control policy in line with them.”
The draconian measure swiftly taken by the Biden administration appears to mark a watershed moment heralding a shift in the drivers of U.S. diplomacy. First, the measure, which typically is reserved for enemies of the U.S., is being targeted at a longtime ally in the fight against terrorism and violent extremism in the Horn of Africa. Secondly, the justification of the measures with respect to human rights protection is patently fallacious and discriminatory, as the Biden administration has deafeningly refused to break its silence about human rights abuses in other parts of the country, including the raging genocidal atrocities being committed against Amharas, Orthodox Christians and other minority groups who live in the Oromia and Benishangul-Giumuz regions. In addition, the basis for the hastily taken measures is not thoroughly-researched evidence, but instead dubious reports by journalists and social media activists with ostensibly nefarious intentions. Lastly, and most importantly, the real motivation for the uncanny measure appears to be personal connections shrouded in a lofty humanitarian veil rather than the advancement of a coherently framed foreign policy, as was the case in previous decades.
Vision Ethiopia Policy Statement On Determinants of U.S. Foreign Policy in the Digital Age: Disinformation, Money and Connections
