Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan sign Nile River deal

The Heads of State and Government of Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan have signed an agreement on the sharing of the River Nile waters. The deal, signed on Monday in Khartoum, is on the basis of the operations of Ethiopia’s controversial Grand Renaissance Dam. Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn, Egyptian President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi and Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir held negotiations in Khartoum to end the more than two years of dispute between the three countries. Mr Hailemariam confirmed that the historic agreement would pave the way for more cooperation between the three countries. “The Ethiopian government is committed to the welfare of the three countries and we assure the Egyptians that we will not cause any harm to them,” Mr Hailemariam said. President Sisi said the three countries could overcome their differences through constructive talks. He called on the tripartite technical committee to complete its work to finalise the talks on the dam. “We have the same fate in the three countries, we want this agreement to be implemented, we need this agreement to be a gentlemen’s agreement,” President Sisi said President Bashir described the signing of the agreement as historic. “We call on all the Nile basin countries to be committed to developing mutual cooperation among the three countries,” President Bashir urged. “I hope this agreement will be the first step toward solving all the problems between the Nile Basin countries,” he added. A preliminary agreement on the same had been announced by the Foreign ministers of the three countries in Khartoum on March 6, without elaborating on details. Egypt greatly fears the Grand Renaissance Dam project could diminish its water supply.

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Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan sign Nile River deal