Egypt prepares Renaissance Dam file to present to Trump

Egypt is currently working on updating the Ethiopian Renaissance Dam file in coordination with officials in Sudan with the aim of beginning a new path as part of the actions related to the crisis, with the new US administration led by President-elect, Donald Trump.

According to Egyptian sources who spoke to Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, the technical officials in charge of the file in the Ministry of Irrigation received orders to update the data on the extent of the damages that Egypt has suffered, as well as the amount of financial allocations that have been directed to the water desalination sectors during the past four years. This comes after activating the mechanisms of technical and political consultation with Sudan at the Ministers of Irrigation and Foreign Affairs’ level, in order to prepare a comprehensive file to present to the Trump administration. This is as a result of officials in his administration promising that the Dam crisis file would be among his priorities in order to impose an agreement regarding operating the Dam during the coming period.

Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia were close to reaching an agreement on filling and operating the Renaissance Dam at the end of 2019 and early 2020 after US mediation sponsored by Trump, but Addis Ababa refused to sign at the time.

According to Egyptian sources, the political leadership received positive signs regarding Trump returning to play a role in resolving and ending this crisis through a written agreement between the three parties: Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia, in a manner that takes into account the concerns and needs of all parties. The sources revealed that the new American promises to Cairo were made in the context of the roles Cairo has recently played in some of the region’s crises, most notably the war in Gaza.

OPINION: Why a Trump win will suit Egypt’s Al-Sisi