Egypt has criticised Ethiopia’s decision to resume refilling the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) after receiving official notification from the Ethiopian government on Monday. The move is likely to increase tensions between Ethiopia and Egypt, and Sudan over the control of the Nile River and comes ahead of a United Nations Security Council (UNSC) meeting on the issue scheduled on Thursday.
The Egyptian Irrigation Ministry released a statement expressing “its firm rejection of this unilateral measure” and called Ethiopia’s decision “a violation of international laws and norms that regulate projects built on the shared basins of international rivers.” Irrigation Minister Abdel-Aty said unilateral actions taken by Ethiopia could have negative consequences for Egypt and Sudan, which are both water-starved countries, especially if the filling coincides with the drought season and reduce the flow of water into Egypt and Sudan. “Ethiopia does not have the political will to reach an agreement and always seeks to evade any commitment,” he added.
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The incident comes as the UNSC is set to hold a meeting on the Nile dispute after the Arab League repeatedly called for the Council’s intervention on the issue. Responding to the League’s “interference,” Ethiopia wrote a letter to the UNSC on Tuesday “protesting the Arab League’s meddling on GERD.” The letter stated that Ethiopia was “disappointed by the Arab League for addressing the UN on a matter that does not fall within its purview.” It added that the League’s approach “risks undermining the friendly and cooperative relations between AU [African Union] and the Arab League.”
On the contrary, the Arab League condemned Ethiopia’s letter on Tuesday, saying that it was a “clear endeavour to drive a wedge” between the League and the AU. “The Ethiopian endeavour is, unfortunately, trying to portray the issue as an Arab-African conflict,” a statement released by the League read. It stressed that the Arab League was not seeking to engage in any form of confrontation with the AU.
Moreover, United States (US) State Department spokesperson Ned Price said Washington supports “collaborative and constructive efforts” by all parties to an “enduring agreement” on the Nile dispute. Price also called on all sides to refrain from taking any “unilateral action” and urged all parties to commit to a “negotiated solution that is acceptable to all sides.”
The Nile, an international watercourse that has historically been linked mainly to Egypt, provides nearly 96% of the desert country’s renewable freshwater and almost 95% of its population lives within 12 miles of the river, using its resources for agriculture, industrial production, and sewage treatment. However, over the past few decades, demands from other riparian states, especially Ethiopia, to access the river’s waters and utilise its resources have been perceived as a major national security threat by Egypt. In addition, the GERD, which would provide water and power to millions of Ethiopians, currently faces severe deprivation of these resources.
The Egypt-Ethiopia dispute over the Nile started when the latter began constructing the GERD in 2011 on the Blue Nile tributary, which originates in Ethiopia’s highlands and provides the river with 85% of its total water flow. Egypt fears that the dam will decrease its supply of Nile water, and any diversion would lead to significant evaporation and water loss.