Sudan boycotted the latest round of negotiations with Egypt and Ethiopia on Nov. 21 over the controversial Ethiopian dam on the Nile River.

Sudan sees the talks as having failed to yield any results in recent rounds and is calling for there to be more reliance on African Union experts as part of the effort to bridge the gaps between the three countries. 

The African Union has been sponsoring arduous but unsuccessful negotiations between the three parties since June 26, in the presence of experts from the United States, the World Bank and the European Union.

In a press statement Nov. 22, following an emergency meeting of Sudan’s Supreme Committee for the negotiations on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, Sudanese Irrigation Minister Yasser Abbas said there is a need to change the negotiation methodology to make a breakthrough that would allow progress in talks. He added that Sudan continues to adhere to the African Union’s sponsorship of the negotiations but seeks a different methodology. This apparently has to do with a great reliance on African Union experts.