US to reverse sanctions against Eritrea with Red Sea strategy in play

The US is set to remove sanctions against Eritrea, according to an internal US Government document seen by Reuters, a decision analysts linked to the African state's strategic location on the Red Sea shipping route.

The US move is aimed at improving ties with Eritrea, which has a long Red Sea coastline opposite Saudi Arabia, while also sending a message to neighbouring Ethiopia not to go to war with its longtime Horn of Africa foe, analysts said.

The war in Iran and closure of the Strait of Hormuz, close to Saudi Arabia's eastern coast, have brought into focus the importance of controlling the Red Sea, a key conduit for trade between the Mediterranean and Asia.

However, the Horn of Africa region is destabilised by war in Sudan, tension in Somalia and fears of conflict between Ethiopia and Eritrea.

US-based advocacy group Freedom House ranks isolationist Eritrea as one of the most repressive countries in the world, on a par with North Korea, describing it as a militarised authoritarian state and noting it has not held a national election since independence from Ethiopia in 1993.