CAIRO – The fourth and final round of negotiations on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam failed on Tuesday in Addis Ababa.
Egypt’s Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation on Tuesday said the deadlock ends the protracted talks with Ethiopia and the Sudan, which sought to expedite the finalization of an agreement on the rules of filling and operation of the GERD within four months.
Cairo blamed Addis Ababa for the collapse of the talks, due to its “persistent refusal over the years to accept any of the technical or legal compromise solutions that would safeguard the interests of all three countries, as well as Ethiopia’s consistent backtracking on the understandings that were reached”.
“It has become evident that Ethiopia elects to continue exploiting the negotiation process as a cover to solidify a fait accompli on the ground, while negotiating exclusively for the purpose of obtaining an instrument of approval from the downstream countries of an unregulated and absolute Ethiopian control of the Blue Nile, in isolation from Ethiopia’s obligations under international law,” the ministry said in the translated statement.
With the talks ending a deadlock, Egypt said it will closely monitor the filling and operation of the GERD, and reserves its right to defend its water and national security in the event of harm in accordance with international law.
In September 2023, Ethiopia announced the filing of the controversial $4 billion dam on the Blue Nile.
Making the announcement, Ethiopia Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said they had completed the fourth and final phase of filling a reservoir for its planned massive hydroelectric power plant on the Blue Nile, a project Egypt and Sudan have opposed.
“It is with great pleasure that I announce the successful completion of the fourth and final filling of the Renaissance Dam. Ethiopians have helped us by working together. Congratulations to all who participated in the work with their money, knowledge, energy and prayers,” Abiy said in a social media update on X.
The announcement came just over a week after Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan resumed their years-long negotiations on August 27 after two-year stalemate.
Acknowledging the challenges faced in the project, PM Abiy said the cooperation in the initiative should be repeated in the country’s other affairs.
“We had many challenges. There was too much pulling for us to turn back. We had an internal challenge with external pressure. We endured all that and reached the top of the hill, not the end of the hill.
“I believe that we will complete what we have planned in the next period. I would like to take this opportunity to pledge that we will continue to support the dam until the end,” the PM said.
Egypt reacted immediately, terming the move as “illegal”, adding that the “unilateral measure places a burden on the course of the resumed negotiations, the next round of which is hoped will witness a tangible and real breakthrough.”
In February 2021, Sudan, which is currently involved in internal fighting between the Sudan Armed Forces and Rapid Support Forces, said if Ethiopia went ahead to fill the dam, it would be a threat to its national security.
“The filling of the Renaissance Dam by one side next July represents a direct threat to Sudan’s national security,” Sudanese Irrigation and Water Resources Minister Yasser Abbas told Reuters.
