evidence: Eritrea is bordered to the south by Ethiopia, to the west by Sudan and the east by Djibouti. The nation has had a long and hostile relationship with its neighbors with some such as Ethiopia claiming the territory as a means to gain access to the sea. Before the arrival of the Italians, the territory which Eritrea currently lies on had its borders defined by various civilizations and kingdoms that ruled the area. Some of the civilizations that resided in the area include Gash Group, Punt, Kingdom of D’mt, Ona Culture, Medri Bahri, Kingdom of Aksum, Aussa Sultanate and Habesh Eyalet. [...] The two nations share a 70-mile border and have had strained relations over the years. The current boundary between Eritrea and Djibouti is derived from a boundary agreement established in the year 1900. The agreement indicated that the boundary would start at Ras Doumeira. The agreement, however, did not assign sovereignty to the nearby Doumeira Island and neighboring islets. The boundary had witnessed conflict sometimes including during colonial times when Djibouti was under French rule. Recent conflict over the border was reported in 1996 when Djibouti claimed that Eritrean forces had made a 4.5 mile incursion into Djibouti’s territory. The border also experienced the Djiboutian-Eritrean border conflict in the year 2008 that lasted between June 10 and June 13.