Ethiopia said Monday the recent crisis in Somalia should be resolved "by the will and active participation of the Somali people."

Ethiopia's Ministry of Information said in a statement that the goodwill of neighboring countries, including Ethiopia, could not substitute the crucial role of the Somali people in resolving the crisis in that country.

The decisive role in resolving the crisis in Somalia is in the hands of the people and the political forces of that country, it said, adding that neighboring countries, including Ethiopia, could not play the key role of the Somali people in resolving the crisis besides supporting efforts toward that goal.

"The Ethiopian government believes that the recent crisis in Somalia is a result of absence of government and lawlessness in that country," the statement said.

The prime victims of the crisis are the people of Somalia, it said.

Ethiopia is closely observing the Somali issue since the crisis in that country could have negative repercussions on Ethiopia and the neighboring countries next to Somalia, according to the statement.

Ethiopia has a responsibility only to support ongoing efforts geared toward creating a legitimate government in Somalia, ensuring peace and stability in the country and thwarting the suffering of the Somali people, it said.

In Somalia, the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) took control of the capital Mogadishu early last month after routing an alliance of warlords whose militias have held sway in the city since the early 1990s.

Somalia is currently without a functioning national administration and has been wracked by civil strife since 1991 when the regime led by Muhammad Siyad Barre was toppled.

Presently, Somalia's Transitional Federal Government is based in Baidoa town, 240 km from Mogadishu, and Somalia's interim President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed said his administration would move to the capital city when peace returned there.

Ethiopian troops over the weekend entered a second town in Somalia and took control of a key airport, witnesses confirmed on Monday. However, there is no confirmation from either the Ethiopian or the Somali government.

The Islamic Courts, a militia group that controls the capital and much of south Somalia, has vowed to drive out Ethiopian troops.

Eyewitnesses said Ethiopian soldiers took over control of the airstrip at Wajid -- about 100 kilometers north of Baidoa before dawn on Saturday.

Ethiopian soldiers reportedly crossed the border last Thursday and entered Baidoa, but Addis Ababa has denied it had sent its troops into Somalia.

The head of the Islamic Courts Council, Sheik Hassan Dahir Aweys, last Friday declared a holy war against Ethiopia, its traditional enemy, as hundreds of demonstrators staged anti- Ethiopia protests in Mogadishu.

Somalia invaded Ethiopia in 1978 in an attempt to grab land occupied by ethnic Somalis. Since then, Ethiopia has attempted to influence Somali politics to prevent another invasion. Addis Ababa sent troops into Somalia in 1993 and 1996 to crush Islamic militants attempting to establish a religious government.

Source: Xinhua