Egyptian, S.African leaders discuss Nile dam dispute

October 15, 2020

Egypt expressed rejection of “any action or procedure that affects it’s rights to the Nile water”…Reports Asian Lite News

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi and his South African counterpart Cyril Ramaphosa discussed the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) on the Nile River In a phone conversation.

During the call on Wednesday, Sisi reiterated Egypt’s stance regarding the dam, which seeks to reach “a binding and comprehensive legal agreement” on the rules of filling and operating the dam through tripartite negotiations with Ethiopia and Sudan, Xinhua news agency quoted an official statement as saying.

He also expressed rejection of “any action or procedure that affects Egypt’s rights to the Nile water”.

For his part, Ramaphosa, also the incumbent President of the African Union (AU), expressed keenness on continuing intensive coordination with Egypt and working on reaching “a fair and balanced agreement” on the vital issue, said the Egyptian statement.

Sudan, Egypt and Ethiopia have been negotiating under the AU over technical and legal issues related to the filling and operation of the GERD.

The $4 billion GERD has been a source of tension in the Nile River basin since Ethiopia started constructing it in 2011.

Ethiopia expected the dam to produce over 6,000 megawatts of electricity and become Africa’s largest hydropower dam upon completion.

However, Egypt, a downstream Nile Basin country that relies on the river for its freshwater, is concerned that the dam might affect its 55.5-billion-cubic-meter annual share of the water resources.

Also read:Egypt hosts UN-backed Libyan peace talks

Previous Story

UAE chairs Arab ministers meeting

Next Story

Israeli Move To Build New Settlement draws Ire

Latest from -Top News

UAE credit soars to the top

S&P Global, Moody’s Investors Service, and Fitch Ratings — have all assigned strong sovereign credit ratings to the UAE In a strong

Khamenei rebukes Trump

Khamenei said Iran had triumphed over the US and downplayed the impact of the strikes on the country’s nuclear infrastructure Iran’s Supreme

UAE powers up China ties

Dr Sultan Al Jaber’s China visit boosts UAE-China strategic ties, focusing on energy, renewables, and industrial cooperation amid record bilateral trade and

Khamenei threatens more strikes

Iran’s supreme leader rebukes Trump’s ‘surrender’ remark, warns of repeat attacks on US bases and Israeli targets. In his first public appearance