Egypt, Sudan Urge Ethiopia to Seriously Negotiate over Controversial GERD

On Wednesday, Egypt and Sudan renewed their calls on the international community to help in resolving their dispute with Ethiopia over the Controversial Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) that Addis Ababa is building on the Blue Nile, the main tributary of the Nile River.

Egyptian foreign and irrigation ministers flew to Sudan’s capital, Khartoum, for talks with Sudanese counterparts focusing on Ethiopia’s dam project.

Tensions have mounted since the African Union-mediated talks between the three nations stalled in April.

In a joint statement after the meetings Wednesday, Egypt and Sudan warned of “serious risks and grave consequences of the unilateral filling” of the dam’s massive reservoir. They fear Ethiopia will reduce their share of the Nile River water.

They also agreed to coordinate their efforts at the regional, continental and international levels to push Ethiopia to negotiate seriously,” the joint statement said.

Both countries blamed the failure of AU-sponsored talks on what they described as Ethiopia’s intransigence.

Ethiopia has said it plans to complete the second phase of filling the dam in the coming rainy season, a move Sudan and Egypt rejected before a binding legal agreement was reached.

Egypt and Sudan called on the international community to intervene “to ward off risks related to Ethiopia’s continued pursuit of its policy of seeking to impose a fait accompli on the downstream countries.”

There was no immediate response from Ethiopia, which has rejected calls from Egypt and Sudan to involve mediators outside the African Union.

Sudan said Ethiopia began the second phase of filling the reservoir behind GERD in early May.