Ethiopia escalates Renaissance Dam crisis with decision not to notify Sudan and Egypt about start of dam’s filling

The Ethiopian acting foreign affairs spokesman announced that the country’s plan to start filling the Ethiopian Renaissance Dam in the upcoming wet season is part of the scheduled construction, and there is, therefore, no need to notify Sudan and Egypt.

In an interview with the Ethiopian News Agency, the spokesman, Amsalu Tizazu, underestimated a letter Egypt recently submitted to the UN Security Council on the Renaissance Dam, stating: “This is not surprising, as usual, and we believe it will not achieve any result.”

“Nothing is expected from us regarding the filling of the dam because Egypt and Sudan know that this will happen when the construction of the dam reaches a certain level. After all, it is built to be filled,” added Tizazu.

He indicated that Sudan and Egypt know when the filling process will start and the quantity of water to be filled in the dam at each stage.

READ: Sudan rejects Ethiopia proposal on Renaissance Dam

The spokesman stressed that Ethiopia is keen to ensure a: “Fair and equitable use of the common resources of all the Nile Basin countries.”

In its letter to the Security Council, Egypt discussed its flexible and consistent stances with the rules of international law, and stressed the importance of Ethiopia’s positive engagement in discussions to settle this issue in a fair and balanced manner, to ensure the sustainability of security and stability in the region.

Ethiopia started the construction works of the dam in 2011 on the Blue Nile (the main tributary of the Nile) with the aim of generating electricity. Egypt fears the dam’s impact on its water share of 55.5 billion cubic metres.