Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi stressed his demands for a fair, balanced and legally binding agreement regulating the process of filling and operating the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), done within an appropriate time frame and without any unilateral interference. Cairo and Khartoum reject Ethiopia’s insistence on filling the dam before reaching a binding agreement on filling and operation. Egypt and Sudan say they want a legally binding agreement, while Ethiopia says any pact should be advisory. The downstream nations fear possible blows to water facilities, agricultural land, and overall availability of Nile water. Negotiations over the dam between Egypt, Ethiopia, and Sudan have stalled for years, with the three parties ultimately failing to reach any concrete agreement.

Source: Egypt Independent January 30, 2022 01:19 UTC