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US lifts sanctions on Eritrea’s defense forces and linked entities
The US removed the Eritrean Defense Forces and several individuals and entities in the country from its sanctions list. The decision, announced by Washington on September 18, came at a time when security and trade routes in the Red Sea were regaining strategic importance.
The US administration lifted sanctions imposed on the Eritrean Defense Forces and several Eritrea-linked individuals and entities.
The US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) officially published the changes to the sanctions list on September 18, 2026.
Eritrean Defense Forces removed from list
In the update announced by OFAC, the Eritrean Defense Forces were removed from the Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons (SDN) list, which contains sanctioned individuals and entities.
Those removed from the list also included Eritrea’s ruling party, the People’s Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ), Red Sea Trading Corporation and Hidri Trust.
The designations targeting Eritrean officials Hagos Ghebrehiwet Woldekidan and Abraha Kassa Nemariam were also removed.
Sanctions imposed in 2021
The US imposed the sanctions in 2021 in connection with the conflict and humanitarian crisis in Ethiopia’s Tigray region.
The Eritrean Defense Forces were added to the US sanctions list in November 2021.
The US Treasury Department said the September 18 decision followed the termination of the national emergency declared under the September 17, 2021, presidential order concerning the humanitarian and human rights crisis in Ethiopia.
Red Sea factor draws attention
Reuters reported that the decision came at a time when relations between Washington and Asmara were regaining importance because of Eritrea’s strategic position in the Red Sea.
Eritrea occupies a strategic position because of its coastline along the Red Sea and its proximity to key maritime trade routes in the region.
With Washington’s latest decision, the Eritrean Defense Forces and the other Eritrea-linked individuals and entities specified in the decision were removed from the US sanctions list.
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