Maritime Diplomacy
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Articles, policy briefs, working papers, and reports advancing maritime diplomacy and regional cooperation.

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Article

Ethiopia’s Search for Sea Access: Can Diplomacy Deliver a Regional Solution?

Ethiopia’s search for reliable sea access is reshaping regional conversations about trade, connectivity, and security in the Horn of Africa. This article examines how negotiated commercial arrangements can expand access while respecting sovereignty, advancing mutual economic benefit, and strengthening regional cooperation. It considers the diplomatic pathways available to Ethiopia and its coastal neighbours, including port agreements, transport corridors, and frameworks that place shared prosperity ahead of zero-sum competition.

Center for Maritime Diplomacy
Article

When Maritime Diplomacy Worked: The Yemen–Eritrea Story

In December 1995, Yemen and Eritrea found themselves in armed confrontation over the Hanish Islands in the Red Sea. What began as competing claims over strategically located islands could easily have developed into a prolonged maritime conflict between two neighboring states. Instead, the dispute took a different course. In May 1996, Yemen and Eritrea signed an Agreement on Principles in Paris, renounced the use of force, and committed themselves to peacefully resolving questions of territorial sovereignty and maritime boundaries through arbitration. The process ultimately produced decisions on sovereignty in 1998 and maritime delimitation in 1999. The Yemen–Eritrea experience therefore offers more than a historical account of a territorial dispute. It provides an important example of maritime diplomacy in practice: two states moving from confrontation to negotiation, international law, and peaceful settlement. For a Red Sea region that continues to face competing maritime interests and geopolitical pressures, the lesson remains relevant. Maritime disputes do not have to end in permanent confrontation. Diplomacy can provide a path from contested waters to peaceful coexistence.

Center for Maritime Diplomacy
Policy Brief

Red Sea Chokepoints: Securing the Bab el-Mandeb in a Multipolar Era

The Bab el-Mandeb Strait remains one of the world's most strategically critical maritime chokepoints, linking the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean. This brief examines how competing naval presences, Houthi interdiction campaigns, and great-power rivalry are reshaping freedom of navigation in the strait. We assess the adequacy of existing legal frameworks under UNCLOS and propose a regional maritime security compact among littoral states.

Center for Maritime Diplomacy
Working Paper

Somalia's Blue Economy: Governance Pathways for a Fragile State

Somalia's exclusive economic zone spans over 830,000 square kilometres of the Indian Ocean and Gulf of Aden, yet the country captures only a fraction of its potential maritime revenue. This paper analyses the institutional barriers to effective EEZ governance, evaluates the role of IGAD and the African Union in capacity-building, and proposes a phased framework for developing Somalia's blue economy under conditions of fragile statehood.

Center for Maritime Diplomacy
Annual Report

State of Maritime Diplomacy in the Horn of Africa 2026

Our flagship annual assessment of maritime diplomacy across the Horn of Africa, Gulf of Aden, and Red Sea. This edition tracks developments in bilateral maritime agreements, port infrastructure diplomacy, anti-piracy cooperation, and the evolving role of external naval actors. Includes a comprehensive index of regional treaty ratification and dispute resolution activity.

Center for Maritime Diplomacy
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