The United States has been training the Meles’ army for a long, long time for four reasons: to curve the spread of terrorism, to eliminate the Islamist extremists from the Horn of Africa, to monitor the border dispute between Ethiopia and Eritrea, and to safeguard the access to the sea. The United States believes that it is training the Meles’ army so that Meles could have a modernized and a well disciplined army – an army that respects human rights – the rights of the individuals. In theory, the United States may have taught the Meles’ army discipline, respect to the right of an individual, and the rule of law; however, in practice, we saw the Meles Army indiscriminately slaughtering the peaceful demonstrators of innocent Ethiopians on the streets of Addis Ababa in 2005; we see it now killing the Somali people and burying alive some of the people of Ogaden. What happened to the human rights? What happened to the rule of law? Does indeed the Theresa Whelan’s report include the atrocities of the United States-trained Meles’ army against the Ethiopian civilians and the civilians of the Somalia? The Whelan’s report is silent about these undeniable facts about the atrocities of the Meles’ army in Somalia, in Ethiopia, and even in Kenya or Sudan.

The Whelan’s report simply states, hiding the facts, that the involvement of America in the Horn region is to minimize lawlessness because of the weak governance in that region. Didn’t the Meles’ army learn discipline, the rule of law and human rights from the United States army trainer? Does the Theresa Whelan’s report reveal the weakness and lawlessness of the Meles’ army whose trainer has been the United States army staff? Instead of reporting the many shortcomings of the Meles’ army, Whelan talks about the lawlessness, the territorial disputes, and the weak governance in the Horn of Africa.

To the individual Ethiopians, especially to the people of Ogaden and the people of Somalia, who live under constant fear, intimidation, persecution, and many times killings, the Whelan’s report has no substance. Because it tells them nothing about their human rights violations by the Meles’ army the United States has been training for a long time – an army that brought instability in Somalia, total destruction in Ogaden, deep hatred between Ethiopia and Eritrea, for America supports Ethiopia but not Eritrea.

The presence of American military staff in the Horn of Africa has been a severe headache not only to the terrorists but also to the normal citizens of Ethiopian, Somalia, and particularly to the Ogaden people, for American assistance goes mostly to the building of a strong, ruthless, and lawless army such as the army of Meles Seitanawi, so the common people of Ethiopian and Somalia benefits nothing by the presence of the American army in the Horn of Africa. In order to be there, Americans have been preaching to the people of the Horn that they should cooperate with the United States in destroying terrorism so that America could build them new roads, new hospital, new schools, and send them engineers, doctors, well-trained teachers, and nurses, but America is sending them army generals who could train the Meles’ army, army helicopters, guns, and commandos instead of teachers, doctors, nurses, and engineers.

Whelan’s report says nothing that America has a plan to feed the hungry Ethiopians, to treat the Ethiopian AIDS victims, to bring peace and stability between Ethiopia and Eritrea, between Somalia and Ethiopia, and between Ogaden and its mother country, Ethiopia. Yes, Whelan talks about lawlessness, territorial disputes, and weak governance in the region. Whelan’ report has failed indeed to mention that it was Washington who created lawlessness, territorial disputes, weak governance, and terrorism in the Horn of Africa by training the Meles’ army to terrorize its neighbors, create lawlessness, bring terrorism, and establish territorial disputes. Had not Washington gone to war with Iraq with a pretext that Iraq had developed a mass destruction weapon, the world, including the Horn of Africa, would be the safest place to live now freely, and the territorial dispute between Ethiopia and Eritrea would have been solved long time ago without the help of any foreign government. Right now, Eritrea is adamant to seek help from Washington, and Ethiopia is handcuffed to do any thing without the help of America. Therefore, for all these territorial disputes, lawlessness, weak governance, and terrorism, America is to blame, no one else.

In reality, America’s foreign policy, especially its policy about the Horn of Africa, is a mess; one of its ugliest policies is sending its military staff to Ethiopia to train a terrorist army – Meles’ army- to fight against terrorism that Washington has created by invading Iraq and Afghanistan instead of invading Saudi Arabia where most of the terrorists that hit new York City originated. Knowing that America is losing the battle to eradicate terrorism from the face of the earth, it is now forcing the Horn regions through its economic incentives to guard the American interest by waging war against its enemies – Islamist terrorists – not the enemies of either Ethiopia, Somalia, Djibouti, or Eritrea.

Therefore, the true nature of Theresa Whelan’s report is to modernize Meles’ army – a terrorist army – to fight terrorism to protect Washington’s interest in the Horn of Africa and Meles’ interest in Somalia, Ogaden, and America; without these two fundamental interests, Washington will never help Meles, and Meles will never fight Washington’s terrorism in the Horn of Africa. Thus, the two interests are interwoven; none of them will function without the other.