June 27, 2020 (Khartoum) Sudan, Egypt, and Ethiopia have agreed to postpone filling the reservoir of the Renaissance Dam, until an agreement is signed between the three African countries.
Ethiopia recently said it would soon start filling the reservoir, despite Egypt’s repeatedly warnings against any unilateral action without a tripartite agreement.
A virtual summit, chaired by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, was attended by Sudanese Prime Minister Abdullah Hamdok, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi, and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy
Ahmed, Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Felix Tshisekedi, Prime Minister of Mali Ibrahim Boubaker Keita, and Chairperson of the African Union.
It has been agreed to refrain from taking any unilateral actions including filling the dam before reaching an agreement, Rady said, adding a letter will be sent to the UN Security Council (UNSC) which is going to discuss the dam issue on June 29.
Sudanese prime minster, Abdallah Hamdouk asserted his belief in the slogan “African solution to African issues” and that African leaders have the wisdom and ability that qualify them to solve their problems
themselves, and stressing the need to reach an agreement that preserves the interests of the three countries.
Since June 9, the three countries have been holding regular video meetings to discuss issues related to the filling and operation of the GERD in the presence of three observers from the United States, the EU
Commission and South Africa.
Over the past few years, tripartite talks on the rules of filling and operating the Ethiopian grand hydropower dam, including those hosted by Washington, have been fruitless.
“Sudan is an original party in the case of the Renaissance Dam and not a neutral intermediary, as it is the largest beneficiary of the dam, and at the same time, it will be the most affected in the event of risks” Abdallah Hamadouk Added .
The Prime Minister of Sudan urged Egypt and Ethiopia to urgently return to negotiation with African will to reach an understanding on the issue.