Ethiopia receives Russian Su-35 jets, plans S-400 air defence systems

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed announced on Wednesday that Ethiopia has received a dozen Russian Su-35 fighter jets and will also acquire four S-400 air defence batteries. He made the announcement on X during a two-day Russia-Africa Summit in Moscow, where Russia is seeking closer security and economic ties with African countries.

The prime minister said the warplanes arrived a year earlier than expected under an existing agreement with Moscow, thanking Russian President Vladimir Putin for helping speed up the delivery. He gave no date for the arrival of the S-400 batteries, which are designed to shoot down aircraft and missiles.

Abiy said the new equipment would strengthen Ethiopia's ability to "preemptively deter aggression." In a second X post later that day, he described the jets as newly deployed and said they would defend Ethiopian airspace.

The announcement is the latest sign of Russia's growing military partnership with Ethiopia, following a series of agreements in recent years. The two governments signed a military cooperation agreement in Addis Ababa in July 2021 aimed at improving the Ethiopian armed forces' training and technology.

In January, defence publication Janes reported that Ethiopia had displayed newly acquired Russian Yak-130 advanced jet trainers during celebrations marking its air force's 90th anniversary. Russia supplied 15 percent of Africa's imports of major weapons between 2021 and 2025, making it the continent's third-largest supplier, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.

Moscow has sought closer military and economic ties with African countries while facing Western sanctions over its war in Ukraine. The Russia-Africa Summit, which began Wednesday, brings African leaders together for talks on trade, investment and security.

The announcement follows a major shift in the fighting in Tigray, where government troops and allied forces entered the regional capital Mekelle on October 4 after fighters from the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) withdrew. The TPLF, an armed group that previously governed the region, has suffered further territorial losses as government forces advanced into other towns.

Addis Ababa has since appointed a six-month caretaker administration for Tigray, but the fighting has not stopped. A TPLF commander called for continued resistance in a television broadcast last week, while the group has also claimed attacks against government-aligned troops in northwestern Tigray on Wednesday.

The renewed war has effectively undone a peace agreement signed in Pretoria, South Africa, in November 2022 that ended two years of fighting, which researchers at Belgium's Ghent University estimate killed about 500,000 civilians. Government forces are also battling Fano, an Amhara armed group that has been fighting federal troops since 2023.