Excerpts from Books and Wikipedia
"Eritrea’s future proved difficult to resolve." Ethiopia was anxious to gain the port of Massawa. "Arab countries proposed an independent state. The Eritreans themselves, numbering about 3 million, were divided over the issue. . . . The compromise reached by the United Nations was a form of federation linking Ethiopia and Eritrea under which the Ethiopian government was given control of foreign affairs, defence, finance, commerce and ports, while Eritrea was allowed its own elected government and assembly to deal with local affairs. . . . From the outset, however, Haile Selassie regarded the federation as nothing more than a step towards unification." [The Fate of Africa, p. 208-10] "Regarding the fourth, the small state of Eritrea (about the size of Ohio), suffice it to say that it came into existence in 1993 when it separated from Ethiopia, with whom it still engages in boundary disputes and clashes that have damaged the economies of both countries. Eritrea’s early hopes for representative government and economic progress were dashed by war, dictatorial rule, and, most recently, its involvement in Islamic sectarian strife." [Geography: Realms, Regions, and Concepts, 17th Edition, p. 275]