Egypt has toughened its public messaging on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), as Ethiopia prepares to officially inaugurate it in September. 

During a visit by Sudanese Prime Minister Kamil al-Taib Idris, Cairo issued a joint statement with Khartoum on Aug. 7 saying the two sides had “reiterated their rejection of the unilateral approach on the Blue Nile, which is inconsistent with the relevant principles of international law and the spirit of cooperation.” 

A few days later in Cairo, President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, alongside Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, warned that Egypt will not compromise its water rights and stated that it rejects Ethiopia’s unilateral actions involving the GERD.

Sisi carefully orchestrated Museveni's visit to Cairo. Uganda chairs the Nile Council of Ministers for the Nile Basin Initiative, an intergovernmental forum that coordinates basin-wide water cooperation. Because Uganda has often been perceived as being sympathetic to the positions of upstream states on the Nile, engaging Museveni allows Cairo to counter allegations that it seeks to hinder upstream countries’ development projects, especially as it has benefited from the historical allocation system, which has heavily favored downstream countries.