Sudan and Egypt Issue Joint Communique on Renaissance Dam

– A joint communique was issued following the one-day visit paid to Sudan by the Egyptian Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Irrigation and the talks held in Khartoum between the Sudanese and Egyptian Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Irrigation on the Renaissance Dam, with participation of technical experts from both sides.

The consultations between the two sides have focused on the developments in the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam file, where the two parties agreed on the serious risks and effects of the unilateral filling of the Renaissance Dam, and stressed the importance of coordinating the efforts of the two countries at the regional, African and international levels to push Ethiopia to negotiate seriously, in good faith and with real political will in order to reach a comprehensive, fair and legally binding agreement on the filling and operation of the Renaissance Dam, after the negotiations sponsored by the African Union that reached a deadlock due to Ethiopian intransigence.

The joint communique pointed out that the two countries have shared identical visions on the importance of coordination to move to protect the security, peace and stability in the region and the African continent, a matter which requires active intervention by the international community to ward off the risks related to Ethiopia’s continued pursuit of its policy of seeking to impose a fait accompli on the downstream countries, as well as the unilateral will that Ethiopia continues to follow. Which was reflected in its announcement about its intention to fill the Renaissance Dam during the upcoming flood season without taking into account the interests of Sudan and Egypt.

The Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Irrigation of Sudan and Egypt expressed deep concern about the potential effects and damages of the filling and operating the Renaissance Dam unilaterally and without a legally binding agreement that regulates the work of this huge dam on the rights and water interests of Sudan and Egypt.

The two sides stressed the importance of concerted international efforts to reach a settlement of the Renaissance Dam crisis in a way that takes into account the interests of the three countries and achieves their common interests.

The joint communique stated that the talks between the Sudanese and Egyptian sides also discussed the bilateral relations between the two countries and affirmed the importance of cementing the historical ties between the two peoples.