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Amr Kandil – Ahram Online
During an official visit to Khartoum yesterday, Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi reiterated “the Egyptian-Sudanese rejection of Ethiopia’s announcement to get on with the second phase of filling the Ethiopian dam’s (GERD) reservoir even if a legally binding deal is not reached between the three countries”.
“Such action may cause serious damage to the interests of Egypt and Sudan”, Sisi said in a press conference in Khartoum with Abdel-Fattah al-Burhan, head of the Sudanese Transitional Sovereign Council.
A statement by the Egyptian presidential spokesman said, “Sisi met with Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok and Vice President of Sudan’s Sovereign Council Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo”.
The president’s meetings included discussion of the GERD issue and other issues of mutual concern.
“We affirmed the necessity to return to serious and effective negotiations, with the aim of reaching a just, balanced, and legally binding agreement on the filling and operating of the dam at the earliest opportunity and before the next flood season”, Sisi added during the conference.
The president stressed the legal agreement must take into consideration the interests of all three countries.
“Our visions agree on the rejection of any approach that is based on endeavours to impose a fait accompli and control over the Blue Nile water flaw through unilateral (Ethiopian) action which does not take into account the interests and rights of the two downstream countries,” al-Sisi said.
The Egyptian president discussed with al-Burhan means to relaunch the GERD negotiations on the bases of inviting a quartet composed of the United Nations (UN), African Union (AU), European Union (EU) and United States to mediate talks in a proactive way.
“We affirmed our full confidence in the ability of His Excellency President Filex Tshisekedi (President of Congo and current Chairman of the African Union) to manage and achieve a breakthrough in these negotiations in order to reach the desired agreement”, Sisi added.
During the press conference with al-Burhan, the Sisi congratulated Sudan on the signing of the comprehensive National peace agreement in the country, calling it a “historic achievement”.
(Sudan’s transitional government and the Sudan Revolutionary Front signed the comprehensive peace agreement, late 2020, to end decades of conflict in Sudan.)
Sisi affirmed to Sudanese PM Hamdok, “Egypt’s keenness to boost bilateral cooperation with Sudan in various fields, including the implementation of electricity and rail linkage projects”.
