Sudan Stresses Need to Reach Binding Deal on GERD

Sudan's Minister of Foreign Affairs Dr. Mariam al-Sadiq al-Mahdi met on Saturday, Chinese ambassador in Khartoum Ma Xinmin.

They discussed ways to boost cooperation between both countries as well as issues of common interests, including the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) crisis.

In this regard, Al-Mahdi affirmed Sudan's steadfast position, stressing the need to reach a legally binding agreement before Ethiopia's second filling of GERD.

Last week, Sudan’s Minister of Foreign Affairs held a meeting with ambassadors of African Union (AU) member states.

At the outset of the meeting, Al-Mahdi provided a detailed explanation of the outcomes of the Kinshasa-based talks on Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), confirming Sudan’s firm position on the necessity of reaching a legally binding agreement before Ethiopia’s second filling of the dam.

She looked forward to African countries’ support to reach comprehensive solutions that are satisfactory to all parties.

Last Wednesday, Sudan’s Minister of Irrigation, Yasser Abbas warned that the failure to reach a fair and binding agreement on GERD threatens regional security and peace.

“Sudan has begun preparing for the lack of water levels in front of the dams,” Abbas said in a press conference on the results of Kinasha- based Talks on GERD, adding: “We will make sure to store one billion cubic meters of water in the Roseires Dam.”

Moreover, He added that Ethiopia rejected all the Egyptian and Sudanese proposals in Kinshasa.

On Tuesday, the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the latest round of African Union (AU) sponsored trilateral talks between Egypt, Sudan, and Ethiopia that were held in the Democratic Republic of Congo in an attempt to re-launch deadlocked negotiations over the disputed GERD failed to reach an agreement.