Eritrea denies Djibouti border accusation

ASMARA (Reuters) - Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki denied on Tuesday sending troops into neighbouring Djibouti, saying Asmara had no desire for another crisis in the Horn of Africa.

Djiboutian President Ismail Omar Guelleh said earlier this month Eritrean soldiers had entered his nation, digging trenches and building defences. He said the armies were "facing each other" and urged international intervention.

"It's a fabrication, we know. There is no basis for that ... There has never been any problem," Isaias said.

"We decline the invitation to go into another crisis in the region," he added, chuckling during an interview with Reuters in the Red Sea state's capital Asmara.

"And to anyone inviting us to another crisis, we'll say 'no thank you, we are not coming'."

Eritrea's long-running enmity with Ethiopia dominates politics in the Horn of Africa. They fought a 1998-2000 border war and favour different sides in the Somali conflict.

Djibouti and Eritrea clashed over their border in the mid-1990s. The African Union has urged restraint following Djibouti's accusation against Asmara.