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The African Union is mediating the three-day talks in Kinshasa as the dispute between the three countries drags on.
A new round of African Union-mediated talks between Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan has begun with the aim of resolving a years-long dispute over a massive dam built by Addis Ababa on the Blue Nile, one of the main tributaries of the Nile River.
The three-day talks that began on Saturday are taking place in Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the current president of the AU.
The foreign and irrigation ministers of the three nations attended the talks on the Great Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), along with experts from the AU, according to Ethiopian Irrigation Minister Seleshi Bekele.
A Sudanese diplomat was quoted by The Associated Press news agency as saying that experts from the three countries and the AU met on Saturday, ahead of ministers who would meet on Sunday and Monday. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not allowed to report to the media.
Egypt’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement that Cairo wants the negotiations to eventually lead to a legally binding agreement on the operation and filling of the gigantic dam reservoir.
Sudan said it will participate in the Kinshasa round with the aim of agreeing on a “negotiating approach” to ensure the talks are constructive. That would include an Egypt-backed Sudanese proposal for the United States, the European Union and the United Nations to actively mediate the dispute, along with the AU.
Ethiopia has rejected the proposal, saying it “believes in solving African problems for Africans.”
The dispute centers on the rate at which a planned reservoir behind the dam fills, the method of its annual replenishment, and the amount of water Ethiopia will release downstream if a multi-year drought occurs. Another point of difference is how the three countries would resolve any future disputes.
The downstream countries, Egypt and Sudan, want a legally binding agreement on the filling and operation of the dam, while Ethiopia insists on the guidelines.
All three countries have been locked in inconclusive GERD talks for nearly a decade, which began in 2011.
The talks in Kinshasa come a few days after Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi said that part of the waters of his country’s Nile River was “untouchable,” a stern warning apparently for Ethiopia, to be It is preparing for another stage of filling the dam later this year.
El-Sisi warned Tuesday of “instability that no one can imagine” in the region if the dam’s reservoir fills up and operates without a legally binding agreement.
Bekele, the Ethiopian minister, said his country “as always is determined to use principles based, equitable and reasonable without causing significant harm,” according to Ethiopia’s official news agency.
Egypt, the most populous country in the Arab world with more than 100 million inhabitants, depends on the Nile for almost all its water needs. He fears that a quick fill would dramatically reduce the river’s flow, with potentially serious effects on his agriculture and other sectors.
Ethiopia says that GERD is essential to its development, arguing that the vast majority of its population lacks electricity. The dam will generate more than 6,400 megawatts of electricity, a massive boost to the country’s current production of 4,000 megawatts.
Sudan wants Ethiopia to coordinate and share data on the operation of the dam to prevent flooding and protect its own power-generating dams on the Blue Nile.
The Blue Nile meets the White Nile in central Sudan. From there, the Nile winds north through Egypt and empties into the Mediterranean Sea.
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