Egypt’s Foreign Ministry on Tuesday confirmed that the latest round of negation talks between Egypt, Ethiopia, and Sudan over the controversial Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) has ended with reaching an agreement, reported Reuters.
Delegations from the three countries were hoping to find a breakthrough in negotiations over a project Ethiopia says is crucial for its economic development, but, no progress could be made.
In a statement, the Foreign Ministry said the talks ended as Ethiopia had a lack of political will to negotiate in good faith.
“The latest African Union (AU)-sponsored talks that sought to re-launch the deadlocked negotiations for reaching a deal over the filling and operation of the dam came with no progress due to persisting differences,” Egypt’s foreign ministry spokesperson, Ahmed Hafez, said.
The foreign ministry spokesman said Egypt and Sudan desired to reach a deal over the dam with a sense of flexibility and responsibility, but Ethiopia rejected all the alternatives.
“Rejection of the Egyptian proposals that were welcomed by Sudan revealed the absence of Ethiopia’s political willing to resume negotiation with good intentions,” he added.
Hafez warned that Ethiopia’s crippling stand will complicate the GERD issue and increase the congestion in the region.
The latest round of talks between the three countries’ foreign ministries was hosted by the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in Kinshasa. The meeting began on Sunday and was extended into a third day on Tuesday.
Egypt’s foreign ministry spokesperson said his government is ready to cooperate with Felix Tshisekedi, the president of DR Congo and current chairman of the AU, to find a solution to the issue that will be in the interests of all three countries and enhances the regional stability.
Meanwhile, the United Nations on Tuesday called for cooperation to reach an agreement over the dam.
Stephane Dujarric, the spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, said the UN has taken note of the conclusion of the discussions in Kinshasa, he added that the global body continues to urge the parties to continue with the efforts to take concrete steps towards reaching an agreement on the issue.
