Talk to aljazeera meles zenawi biography

Meles Zenawi, the Ethiopian prime minister, on Talk to Jazeera

In this episode of Talk to Jazeera Andrew Simmons talks to Meles Zenawi, the prime minister of Ethiopia, in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa.

Zenawi has been the prime minister of Africa’s second most populated country since 1991 but he has most recently been in the headlines for his country’s involvement in Somalia – which Zenawi insists was not an invasion – and the simmering tensions between Ethiopia and its neighbour Eritrea over a long-running border dispute.

The interview begins with the controversial issue of whether Ethiopia invaded Somalia or was invited by the transitional Somali government and what role the US played in this.

Zenawi insists that Ethiopia was invited to enter Somalia by the transitional government and that, far from it being a proxy way fought on behalf of the US, the US warned Ethiopia that they might be walking into a trap.

The Ethiopian prime minister also