The long-running dispute over the controversial Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) that Ethiopia is building on the Blue Nile, the main tributary of the Nile River, remains at a standstill despite repeated attempts to revive negotiations between Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia.
In this context, a Sudanese diplomatic source told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity that the GERD dispute remains complicated since Addis Ababa is not showing any political will to resume the tripartite negotiations. “[Ethiopia’s intransigence] comes despite the two downstream countries — Egypt and Sudan — expressing their readiness to return to negotiations. Meanwhile, Ethiopia's continued refusal to abide by a specific time limit for negotiations and to involve other international parties in [mediating] the dispute adds more complexity to the crisis.”
