Ongoing reforms within the Ethiopian Defence Forces structure will include cyber security and space force in the near future, the Ethiopian Prime Minister’s Office revealed on Thursday.

The Office, in a statement issued on Thursday following the conclusion of the Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s meeting with high-ranking military officials over the past few days, disclosed that a decision to re-establish the Ethiopian naval force has been already made as part of the ongoing reform process.

The office also disclosed that the reform is also considering on the establishment of a new entity - Cyber Security and Space Force - under the Ethiopian Defence Forces in the future.

"With regard to the legal framework, the revisions made look at including the structure of the Navy within the Defence Force Proclamation, and will in the future include Cyber Security and Space Force considerations,” the statement read.

According to Ahmed, the reform is being made with due emphasis given to the context of building a modern warfare units, which include land, air, seas, cyber and space.

"A Defence Force that can readily meet this context is in the process of being built,” the statement quoted Ahmed as saying.

Ahmed, who is also the Commander in Chief of the Ethiopian Army, further confirmed that a lot of efforts have been made to ensure clarification of operational guidelines and the realisation of a modern defence force, the statement added.

"Activities are being undertaken to ensure that the defence force is capable of effectively undertaking its duties and responsibilities through the utilization of modern military equipment,” he said.

The Ethiopian army, one of the strongest and largest in Africa, currently operates on land and air, as landlocked Ethiopia disbanded its naval force some two decades ago following the separation of Eritrea, which left Ethiopia without access to a major ocean or sea that would host its naval force.

In addition to reestablishing a naval force, the East African country now envisaged a cyber and space force to respond to the emerging world military system.

Xinhua