NAIROBI - Ethiopia on Wednesday strongly criticised a U.S. law moving through Congress that links continued aid to democratic reforms, calling it a threat to regional stability and its close military ties with Washington.
The U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday passed the Ethiopian Democracy and Accountability Act, which demands Washington's top counter-terrorism partner in the Horn of Africa make a host of democratic changes or face security aid cuts.
The bill, which still needs U.S. Senate approval and a presidential signature, would also deny U.S. entry visas to any Ethiopian government officials involved in what it calls human rights violations, unless the president authorised a waiver.
The act -- lobbied for by parts of Ethiopia's large diaspora population in Washington -- would bar the aid unless Ethiopia accepted outside rights monitoring, fostered an independent judiciary and media, and allowed U.S.-funded aid to those ends.
It was unclear how much aid could be involved.
"The legislation also would undermine regional stability in the Horn of Africa by jeopardising vital security cooperation between the United States and Ethiopia," Ethiopia's ambassador to the United States, Samuel Assefa, said in a statement.
He said if "the irresponsible legislation" becomes law, "it would create fresh obstacles to Ethiopia's bold efforts toward comprehensive democratic reforms."
The bill exempted counter-terrorism and peacekeeping operations from any funding restrictions, roles Ethiopia is playing in the aftermath of a war to install a U.S.-backed government in neighbouring Somalia.
Ethiopia, with the strongest army in the Horn, is in the thick of several intertwined conflicts, including its backing of the Somali government against insurgents, a border standoff with Eritrea and its fight against insurgents at home.
