Egypt welcomed the statement issued by the White House regarding the ongoing negotiations on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), Presidency spokesman Bassam Rady said on Saturday.
He added that the statement also confirmed that the US calls on Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia to reach an agreement regarding the dam’s filling and operation in a way that achieves common interests for the three countries.
The US also stressed the importance of reaching an agreement that confirms the right for enhancing economic development and prosperity, along with maintaining the right of other parties in the Nile water.
The Spokesman stated that the Egypt calls on US to play an active role in this regard, especially in light of the deadlocked negotiations among the three countries since the signing the Declaration of Principles in 2015.
He stressed the need for international participation to overcome the current stalemate in the GERD negotiations, bring the three countries closer, and reach a fair and balanced agreement based on respecting the principles of international law.
In the same vein, Rady recalled the speech delivered by President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi during the UN General Assembly on Egypt’s openness to all international efforts to mediate in order to reach the aspired agreement.
The problem between Egypt and Ethiopia is a technical one related to the period of filling the dam’s reservoir with water.
"Ethiopia asked for 5-6 years to fill the reservoir, while Egypt asked former to abide by the Nile water quantity flow in filling the reservoir to “avoid any significant damage on the downstream countries,” said former head of the Central Department for Technical Cooperation at the Nile Sector of the Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation Mamdouh who expressed Cairo’s concern over its share was escalated after Ethiopia started building the dam on the Blue Nile in May 2011.
A series of tripartite talks between the two countries along with Sudan has begun in 2014. One year later, the three countries reached an agreement, per which the downstream countries should not be affected by the construction of the dam.
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