Back to the negotiating table on Ethiopia’s mega-dam: Delegations from Egypt, Ethiopia, and Sudan met in Cairo on Sunday to begin a new round of talks to find a solution to their long-running dispute over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, according to an Irrigation Ministry state ment. The three-way talks mark the first direct negotiations in over two years to try and resolve the GERD dispute.

REMEMBER- Egypt and Ethiopia in July agreed to restart talks over the USD 4.6 bn dam, with the aim of finalizing an agreement within four months to bring an end to acrimonious negotiations over how to share the Nile’s water. Ethiopia pledged that while it would continue to fill the reservoir this year, it would do so in a way that doesn’t cause “significant harm” to Egypt and Sudan and continues to meet their water needs. Ethiopia has been unilaterally filling the reservoir over the past three years without a binding agreement, angering Cairo, which in 2021 pulled out of African Union-led negotiations.

Notes of optimism:

  • “There are multiple technical and legal solutions” to the dispute -Egypt’s irrigation minister, Hany Sweilam
  • The talks will “strengthen cooperation” between the three countries – Ethiopia’s chief negotiator, Seleshi Bekele.

The talks got attention internationally: Associated Press | The National.

EL BURHAN IN EGYPT-

Egypt-Sudan talks: General Abdel Fattah Al Burhan, head of the Sudanese army and the country’s de facto leader, was reportedly in El Alamein yesterday for talks with President Abdel Fattah El Sisi, Sky News Arabia reported yesterday. Neither Ittihadiya or the Sudanese sovereign council released public statements yesterday. Al Burhan will travel to Saudi Arabia following talks in Egypt, the broadcaster reported.

RSF open to ceasefire: Al Burhan’s visit came on the same day that the Rapid Support Forces, the paramilitary group that has been fighting against the military since April, expressed willingness to work towards a long-term ceasefire. In a statement picked up by Reuters, RSF leader General Mohamed Hamdan “Hemedti” Dagalo indicated that he’s willing to negotiate a ceasefire and “comprehensive political solutions” to solve the problems at the heart of the conflict.

Remember: Previous attempts by Saudi Arabia and the US to produce a stable ceasefire have been unsuccessful, with both sides accusing each other of breaking the truce and preventing the entrance of humanitarian aid to civilians.

Tags: