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When Abiy Ahmed unexpectedly became Ethiopia\u2019s prime minister in April 2018, he rapidly unleashed a wave of liberal political and economic reforms and shocked the world by making peace with longtime foe Eritrea. This earned him international adoration that culminated in the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize. \n\nJust a year later, however, Africa\u2019s second largest state descended into a horrific civil war that left hundreds of thousands dead and tarnished Abiy\u2019s reformist image. Though his regime nearly collapsed during the war, Abiy ultimately emerged victorious and now rules over a country that is at once internally unstable and regionally ambitious.\n\nThe Economist\u2019s Africa correspondent, Tom Gardner, joins Hudson Research Fellow James Barnett to discuss Gardner\u2019s new book, The Abiy Project: God, Power and War in the New Ethiopia, and Ethiopia\u2019s future in the volatile and strategically vital Red Sea region.