{"id":233589,"date":"2019-10-06T02:04:45","date_gmt":"2019-10-06T06:04:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/?p=233589"},"modified":"2019-10-06T02:04:45","modified_gmt":"2019-10-06T06:04:45","slug":"3-country-talks-on-nile-waters-wrap-up-without-agreement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/2019\/10\/06\/3-country-talks-on-nile-waters-wrap-up-without-agreement\/","title":{"rendered":"3 country talks on Nile waters wrap up without agreement"},"content":{"rendered":"
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FILE: View from Bezawit Road \u2013 Blue Nile River in Bahir Dar, Ethiopia (Photo By A.Savin (Wikimedia Commons \u00b7 WikiPhotoSpace) – Own work\/Wikimedia Commons, FAL<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

CAIRO \u2014 Irrigation ministers from three key Nile Basin countries wrapped up a two-day meeting Saturday in Sudan’s capital without resolving differences over Ethiopia’s soon-to-be-finished Blue Nile dam, with Egypt calling for international mediation to help reach a \u201cfair and balanced\u201d agreement.<\/p>\n

Sudan Irrigation Minister Yasser Abbas told reporters in Khartoum that progress was made but differences on filling the giant reservoir and operating rules of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam remain unsettled.<\/p>\n

He said Ethiopia proposed a plan to fill the reservoir over four to seven years, without elaborating. He added that the three countries would continue consultations without giving a time frame.<\/p>\n

Egypt’s Irrigation Ministry, meanwhile, said in a statement after the meeting that talks have stalemated, claiming Ethiopia rejected \u201call proposals that … avoid causing substantial damage to Egypt.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEthiopia … offered a new proposal that contradicts previously agreed principles governing the filling and operating process,\u201d said Muhammed el-Sebai, spokesman of the ministry.<\/p>\n

He said Egypt has called for international mediation \u201cto help reach a fair and balanced agreement that protect the three countries’ rights.\u201d<\/p>\n

President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi tweeted later that Egypt would \u201ccontinue to take necessary measures at the political level and in accordance with international law to protect its rights\u201d in Nile waters.<\/p>\n

Egyptian presidency spokesman Bassam Radi said Egypt was looking forward to an \u201cinstrumental role\u201d by the U.S. in the talks. He said because there was no breakthrough in negotiations, there was a need for an \u201cinternational instrumental role to overcome the current deadlock.\u201d<\/p>\n

White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham said Thursday the U.S. supports Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan’s negotiations to reach a sustainable and mutually beneficial agreement.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll Nile Valley countries have a right to economic development and prosperity,\u201d Grisham said. \u201cThe administration calls on all sides to put forth good faith efforts to reach an agreement that preserves those rights, while simultaneously respecting each other’s Nile water equities.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ethiopia in a statement later Saturday blamed Egypt for the failure of the talks, claiming Egypt’s delegation applied a \u201cdisruptive tactic to halt the hydrology, environmental and social impact assessment\u201d on the project. Egypt’s proposal for international mediation was \u201can unwarranted denial of the progress in the trilateral technical dialogue\u201d that \u201cgoes against the consent and wishes of Ethiopia and the Sudan,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n

It said, however, that differences among the three parties could be resolved through further talks.<\/p>\n

Eighty-five per cent of Nile waters originate in Ethiopia from the Blue Nile, which is one of the Nile’s two main tributaries.<\/p>\n

Egypt fears the dam could reduce its share of the Nile River, which serves as a lifeline for the country’s 100 million people. Ethiopia has roughly the same population and says the dam will help its economic development.<\/p>\n

\u2014\u2014\u2014<\/p>\n

Associated Press writer Elias Meseret contributed from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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