Egypt, Sudan call for ‘serious negotiations’ regarding GERD

CAIRO – 10 March 2022: Egypt and Sudan stressed the importance of moving forward to serious negotiations regarding the controversial Grand Ethiopian RenaissanceDam (GERD) under the auspices of the presidency of the African Union to lead a binding legal agreement that achieves the interests of the three countries.

 

The Egyptian and Sudanese situation was stated during a meeting between Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry and Sudanese foreign Minister-designate Ali Al-Sadiq Al,  on the sideline of the 157th meeting of the Arab League Council on the foreign ministerial level on Wednesday.

 

Both Ministers called upon Ethiopia to actively engage in these negotiations as soon as possible, according to a statement from the Egyptian Foreign Ministry 

 

The two sides agreed to continue the ongoing efforts to strengthen bilateral relations between Egypt and Sudan in all fields, the statement said.

 

They also stressed the continuation of coordination between the two countries regarding the challenges facing them, and the importance of coordinating their positions on regional and international issues of common interest.

 

The Egyptian and Sudanese sides also agreed on the importance of preserving the unity, integrity and sovereignty of Sudan on its lands, emphasizing support for the ongoing efforts aimed at achieving sustainable stability in Sudan.

 

In his speech at the Arab League meeting, Shoukry affirmed Egypt’s rejection of Ethiopia’s unilateral act of starting the operation of the Renaissance Dam last month, which is a further violation of Ethiopia’s obligations under the 2015 Declaration of Principles Agreement, after Ethiopia had started filling unilaterally over the past two years.

 

“Egypt is looking forward to the continuous support of Arabs and all international partners to urge Ethiopia to fulfill its obligations and show cooperation, which would lead to reaching without delay a binding and fair legal agreement on the rules for filling and operating the Renaissance Dam in line with the presidential statement issued by the UN Security Council in September 2021.