Video: Eritrea denies blocking President Uhuru plane, blames Ethiopia for aborted US trip

Eritrea denies blocking Uhuru plane, blames Ethiopia for aborted US trip

By The-Star

Eritrea has refuted claims that it denied President Uhuru Kenyatta's plane entry into its airspace last Thursday.

The request to fly through the airspace was granted within 20 minutes, said Eritrean Embassy spokesman Beyene Russom.

“We are protesting formally because this is completely false information that Eritrea did not allow the Kenyan plane,” Russom said in a letter copied to foreign missions based in Nairobi.

"The aircraft was in fact turned away in Ethiopian airspace."

State House said the trip to the United States was aborted over the ongoing civil war in Yemen that threatened Uhuru's safety.

Aviation and security experts however said the reasons given by the Presidential Strategic Communications Unit were not solid.

The Star established that 15 minutes after the President’s jet was allegedly turned back from Yemeni airspace, a Kenya Airways aircraft flew through without hindrance.

This was after the Arab Coalition gave commercial flights clearance to fly through the airspace.

Uhuru was to attend the annual Milken Institute Global Conference on global challenges and their solutions in Los Angeles, California.

He delivered his address via video link, urging American businesses to ignore "inaccurate perceptions" about Africa and seek investment opportunities.

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