Will Cairo succeed in stopping Ethiopian control over Nile waters?

CAIRO — Amid tension and anticipation, technical negotiation sessions have occurred daily since June 9 — between the irrigation ministers of Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia, and three observers representing the United States, the European Union and South Africa — following a Sudanese initiative to resume negotiations to reach a comprehensive agreement that would determine the rules of filling and operating the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD).

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed spoke in front of the Ethiopian parliament June 8 ahead of the meetings, stressing that “the decision to fill the GERD reservoir is irreversible.” The Ethiopian government already specified July as the starting date for water storage in the dam’s reservoir without waiting for Sudan and Egypt’s approval.

Ethiopia’s insistence on filling the dam figured on the agenda of the meeting that Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi held with the National Security Council June 9 to discuss the steps to deal with Ethiopia’s unilateral decision to fill the reservoir. Following the meeting, presidential spokesperson Bassam Radi said in a press statement commenting on the launch of technical negotiations, “The resumption of the negotiations June 9 was three weeks late since the Sudanese prime minister’s invitation.” He warned that the negotiations might become “a new tool for stalling and reneging on obligations.”

Sudanese Minister of Water Yasser Abbas has attempted to portray the meetings in a positive light since they began, since Sudan was the one that called for the resumption of the negotiations. In press statements June 9, Abbas described the setting of the first meeting as “positive and fruitful in terms of discussions between the three parties.”