US Supports Trilateral Talks on GERD

White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham said earlier this week that the United States backs Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia's current negotiations on Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), reaching a sustainable and jointly advantageous agreement in Sudan.        

"All Nile Valley countries have a right to economic development and prosperity. The administration calls on all sides to put forth good faith efforts to reach an agreement that preserves those rights, while simultaneously respecting each other's Nile water equities," Grisham said.

[caption id="attachment_83023" align="aligncenter" width="885"] Site of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam in Guba[/caption]

Ethiopia's minister of water and irrigation, Sileshi Bekele said that Egypt wants Ethiopia to fill the dam's reservoir over seven years, releasing 40 billion cubic meters of water every year.

However, after a round of talks in Cairo, last month, Ethiopia dismissed Egypt's proposals on the filling timetable of the dam.    

Egypt's President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi brought the issue to the U.N. during his speech at the General Assembly in New York last month.         

“While we acknowledge Ethiopia's right to development, the water of the Nile is a question of life, a matter of existence to Egypt," el-Sisi said, urging the international community to present a constructive role toward a solution that satisfies all Nile basin countries. 

“Ethiopia has ignored the Egyptian proposal on the Renaissance Dam and insists on filling the dam in just three years, damaging the country downstream and refusing to extend the period to seven years to limit the impact of water retention on Egypt and its share of water,” Mohamed Abou El-Enein, Honorary President of the Euro-Mediterranean Parliament said.

"The United States supports Egypt, Ethiopia, and Sudan’s ongoing negotiations to reach a cooperative, sustainable, and mutually beneficial agreement on filling and operating the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam. All Nile Valley countries have a right to economic development and prosperity.  The Administration calls on all sides to put forth good faith efforts to reach an agreement that preserves those rights, while simultaneously respecting each other’s Nile water equities," the Press Secretary wrote.