Ethiopia accuses Egypt of clinging to ‘colonial-era mentality’ over Nile dispute

Ethiopia has launched a strong attack on Egypt, accusing Cairo of clinging to a “colonial-era mentality” and believing it holds exclusive rights to the waters of the River Nile.

In a sharply worded statement issued on Wednesday evening, Ethiopia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs rejected repeated Egyptian assertions regarding what Egypt describes as its historical rights to the Nile. Addis Ababa said that the remarks made by Egyptian officials — including what it characterised as implicit and explicit threats — reflect “a failure to grasp the realities of the 21^st century”.

The ministry accused Egypt of relying on outdated treaties dating back to the colonial period and claimed that Cairo is attempting to destabilise the Horn of Africa in order to pressure Ethiopia, including by influencing “dependent and divided” neighbouring states.

The statement said: “Some Egyptian officials, influenced by a colonial mindset, continue to believe they have a monopoly over the Nile waters and cite obsolete colonial treaties to assert these alleged rights.”

It further alleged that Egyptian authorities are conducting a campaign aimed at undermining stability in the region by using “pliant, weak, and fragmented client states”.

Addis Ababa stressed that Ethiopia “will not be intimidated” and highlighted what it described as its long record of supporting African unity and anti-colonial struggles across the continent.

Reaffirming its position on Nile water governance, the ministry stated that Ethiopia “will not accept the remnants of colonialism that Cairo struggles to relinquish”, referring to historical Nile-water agreements long disputed by the two countries.