Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry has shortly left for Washington, at the invitation of the US administration, to participate in the tripartite meeting of foreign ministers of Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia to discuss the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD). The meeting is scheduled for November 6th.
During his visit, Shoukry is expected to hold consultations with a number of US senior officials to enhance bilateral relations as well as discussing all regional and international issues of common concern.
US and Russia’s mediation
US President Trump invited the foreign ministers of Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan to attend a meeting in Washington to discuss the GERD crisis.
The invitation was also extended by US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin to David Malpass, president of the World Bank Group.
A World Bank spokesperson said in a statement that Malpass "plans to participate, assuming that all three countries are fully involved and also participate."
On Thursday, the Ethiopian foreign ministry spokesperson Nebiat Getachew told Bloomberg that his country will take part in the 6 November meeting.
Sudan has also announced its intention to attend the meeting.
The three countries are waiting for the outcome of the forthcoming talks, in light of Egypt's keenness to follow the path of negotiation to break the current deadlock.
Kremlin has announced that President Vladimir Putin has previously offered to mediate between Egypt and Ethiopia on the GERD issue.
The Russian offer came only two days after Egyptian foreign ministry accepted the US invitation to host a tripartite meeting among foreign ministers of Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia.
It is noteworthy that El-Sisi met with Ethiopia's Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed on the sidelines of the Russia-Africa Summit in Sochi and agreed to resume the works of an independent technical committee in a more open and positive way.
Abiy affirmed his country's commitment to the course of negotiations until a final agreement is reached.
The GERD, which is being built near the border with Sudan, will be the largest hydropower project in Africa when completed in 2022, generating more than 6,000 megawatts of electricity.
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