Estonia's EestiEest published on 13 June 2024 an article titled "What's Holding Up the Speculative Russian-Eritrean Naval Base Talks?"
Russia's ambassador to Eritrea told TASS that Asmara "advocates the permanent presence of our fleet in the Red Sea" and hinted that it offered Moscow a naval base earlier this year. The author of the article speculated that Asmara wants more in return from Moscow than just rent and that is what is holding up an agreement. The author added that Eritrea may be demanding that Russia take Asmara's side in a dispute with Ethiopia, a demand that Moscow would not be able to accept.
