UAE believes successful conclusion to Sudan, Egypt and Ethiopia talks over Renaissance Dam is ‘within reach’

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) believes a ‘successful conclusion to negotiations’ between Sudan, Egypt and Ethiopia over the controversial Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) is ‘within reach,’ according to a statement posted on the website of the Permanent Mission of the UAE to the UN on Tuesday.

In its statement, the UAE described the GERD dam as a great opportunity to enhance regional integration and cooperation, welcoming all three countries to the African Union (AU) led negotiations. Since the start of its construction in 2011, the dam has been continually criticised by both Sudanese and Egyptian authorities.

Sudanese authorities have long complained that recent fillings of the Blue Nile dam constitute a unilateral action in breach of legal obligations agreed upon by Ethiopia, Sudan, and Egypt in the 2015 Declaration of Principles. According to Egyptian media, Ethiopia began the third stage filling of the dam in July.

Sudan and Egypt want a legally binding agreement from Ethiopia on the operation and filing of the dam, as well as guarantees they will receive a certain quantity of the Nile’s waters, fearing it could lessen their share of the river.

The GERD dam lies 40 kilometres from Sudan's eastern border. Sudanese authorities have asked Ethiopia for real-time data on the dam’s operations to assure the functions of its own hydroelectric Nile dams and to stop future flooding floods.

The UAE said it believes the 2015 Declaration of Principles on the GERD remains a foundational reference point for the remaining negotiations.

The dam, Ethiopia’s intention to fill it, and the ramifications to Sudan and Egypt downstream have been the subject of sharp and often fruitless negotiations.