Egypt maintained political will to launch serious GERD talks, reach deal, FM tells Senegal's president

CAIRO – 21 April 2021: Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said Egypt has maintained a political will to launch serious negotiations with the aim of reaching a legally binding agreement on the filling and operation of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD).

As he met with Senegalese President Macky Sall in Dakar, Shoukry affirmed the need to reach this agreement on GERD in a way that serves the rights and interests of the three countries, a statement by the Egyptian Foreign Ministry read on Thursday.

Shoukry also affirmed Egypt’s keenness to work with various nations and parties to resolve the GERD issue in a way that prevents any harm to the security and stability of the region.

The Egyptian minister also briefed Sall on the highlights of the latest Kinshasa talks that took place on 4-5 April on GERD, the ministry said. This AU-sponsored talks also failed to reach any consensus between Egypt and Sudan and Ethiopia.

وزير الخارجية #سامح_شكري يلتقي بالسيد ماكي سال رئيس السنغال ويسلمه الرسالة الموجهة إليه من السيد الرئيس عبد الفتاح السيسي.
🇸🇳 🤝 🇪🇬 @PR_Senegal pic.twitter.com/5s9jJngS8R

— Egypt MFA Spokesperson (@MfaEgypt) April 21, 2021

Shoukry handed Sall a message from Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi on GERD and the Egyptian stance in this regard.

Shoukry’s visit to Dakar comes as part of a six-state African tour, to hand leaders of these countries messages from their Egyptian counterpart on GERD updates.

The tour has also included DR Congo, the current chair of the African Union, as well as Niger, Kenya, Comoros and South Africa. Shoukry will also head to Tunisia as the final stop in the tour.

Rounds of negotiations among Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia on GERD have reached a deadlock several times with Egypt blaming the failure on Ethiopia’s intransigence.

Egypt and Sudan insist that a legally binding agreement on the filling and operation of the dam should be reached before Ethiopia implements the second phase of dam filling.

Ethiopia, however, says it will complete the dam filling in July with or without an agreement.

Shoukry on April 13 sent a letter to the United Nations Security Council, calling on the international community to engage in advancing the stalled GERD talks and persuade Ethiopia to refrain from unilateral acts.