ETHIOPIA PERSPECTIVE

The Ethiopian Reporter documents existential crisis. The headline is chilling: "180K Tons Missing: Ethiopia Enforces Fuel Rationing Amid $230/Barrel Spike." 180,000 metric tons of ordered fuel never arrived. Diesel sells at $230 per barrel—three times pre-war prices. Gasoline rose from $70 to $150. Daily diesel availability crashed in half: from 9.2 million liters to 4.5 million. The government spends 15-20 billion birr monthly in subsidies. Commerce Minister Kassahun Gofe announces strict rationing: transport, major producers, exporters and agriculture first. This is the crisis of a landlocked nation, with no sea access, whose supply routes run through Djibouti—another chokepoint the Middle East war destabilizes. Ethiopia appears in no Western coverage of the oil crisis. It is a complete blind spot: while rich countries debate $4 a gallon, a nation of 120 million rations fuel to power hospitals. The contrast with Western coverage is stark. When Brent moves from $72 to $114, rich countries discuss inflation. When diesel moves from $80 to $230 for a landlocked nation with no sea access, it is survival crisis. Ethiopian supply routes run through Djibouti—another chokepoint the war destabilizes. The Ethiopian government, already weakened by Tigray conflict fallout, faces additional pressure threatening food security for 120 million people. No Western media mentions Ethiopia.