Egypt backs Sudan’s new proposal on Nile River Dam
Egypt announced its support for the Sudanese proposal to develop the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam negotiations mechanism, by forming an international quartet for mediation and that observers believe aims to pressure Ethiopia to make concessions in the negotiations and sign a binding agreement between the three parties.
CAIRO — Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry announced Feb. 24 Egypt's support for the Sudanese proposal to improve the negotiations mechanism over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) by forming an international quadripartite committee for mediation, which would include the United States, the European Union, the United Nations and the African Union (AU).
Shoukry met with the coordinator of the concerned work cell at the presidency of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Alphonse Ntumba, on Feb. 24, where he noted that the main goal of Egypt's support for the Sudanese proposal is to move forward with the negotiations process and to help the three countries — Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia — reach the desired agreement at the earliest opportunity.
On Feb. 6, Sudan called for expanding the GERD negotiations umbrella, to include the United States, the EU, the UN and the AU, so their roles as observers can turn into mediators.
The tripartite GERD negotiations are still stalled. The last round of negotiations took place Jan. 10, but it failed to achieve any progress.
