Italian auxiliary cruiser Ramb II significant presence of Royal Navy in the Red Sea. With the start of Operation Compass in North Africa and the defeat of the Italian troops at Sidi Barrani on 9-12 December 1940, it became clear that it would be impossible for Italian troops in Libya to reach Italian East Africa to break its isolation. The fuel supplies were dwindling and were projected to be exhausted by June 1941. In anticipation of the inevitable fall of the colony, a plan was developed to send as many ships as possible to Japan or occupied France and to destroy all other ships that
Eritrean–Ethiopian border conflict capital Addis Ababa. The occupied country was annexed into the Italian East African colony together with the other Italian east African colonies. On 10June 1940, Italy declared war on Britain and France; in March 1941 Britain began a campaign to capture the Italian-held territory in the region. By November, the British had occupied the whole Italian East African colony. However thousands Italian soldiers started a guerrilla warfare in their former colony which lasted until October 1943. Ethiopia regained its independence, and Eritrea was placed under Britain military administration. After the war there was a debate as to what would happen