MALABO, Equatorial Guinea — Egyptian Foreign Minister Nabil Fahmy said he will continue to pursue “meaningful negotiations” with Ethiopia and Sudan to resolve the Nile water crisis involving Ethiopia’s controversial Renaissance Dam.

“Our goal is not to enter into a conflict,” Fahmy told Al-Monitor in an exclusive interview during a trip to Equatorial Guinea on May 10. Fahmy said he was awaiting Ethiopia’s response to initiating “fast-paced negotiations” and warned that Egypt will turn to the international community should it get the cold shoulder from Addis Ababa.

In regard to highly publicized human rights abuses in Egypt, including the detention of journalists and mass death sentences, Fahmy said, “What is occurring in Egypt affects the country’s overall image abroad. … I do not deny that mistakes were committed in certain instances." Fahmy insisted, however, that the Egyptian government does not “interfere in the proceedings or sentences handed down against those accused.”

Cairo’s top diplomat stressed the road map to democratic transition was proceeding in Egypt, pointing to it as a key factor in reviving strained US-Egypt ties. “The more we implement the steps of the road map, the more American military aid we expect to be released. … The American side did request that the road map be implemented and that we uphold the promise made to our people concerning instilling democratic principles,” he said.