Morocco shows support to Egypt in Nile dam crisis
In a first, Morocco officially announced its support to Egypt in the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) crisis, but many believe this position will not help shift the negotiations over the GERD or change Ethiopia’s unilateral practices.
The Moroccan government has recently voiced its full solidarity with Egypt’s water rights, labeling the Egyptian water security an integral part of Arab water security.
It also called on the disputing parties to the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) for abandoning unilateral practices and abiding by international treaties on international rivers, in particular the international law and the 2015 Declaration of Principles explicitly banning unilateral measures with regard to filling and operating the dam.
Morocco further urged the disputing parties to cooperate in order to reach a binding legal agreement on the filling rules of the controversial dam that Ethiopia is building on the Blue Nile, the main tributary of the Nile River.
This show of support was expressed in a joint statement made at the end of talks in Rabat May 10 between Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry and his Moroccan counterpart, Nasser Bourita.
