Sudan Promoting Somebody Else’s Agenda in Trilateral Negations: FA Spokesperson

Addis Ababa April 15/2021 (ENA) Ethiopia believes that Sudan has a proxy position with regard to GERD and is promoting somebody else's agenda in the trilateral negotiations, Foreign Affairs Spokesperson said.

Briefing the media today, Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Dina Mufti said the trilateral negotiation in Kinshasa could not succeed because of differences in agenda.

The Ethiopian delegation highlighted the need for continuing the African-led process while the other two parties were not interested for the success of this process, he added.

The spokesperson revealed that Egypt took the agenda to the United States unnecessarily when it was chair of the AU with utter disregard to the African Union.

“After the South Africans assumed the chairmanship, Egypt boycotted negotiations close to seven times; and now they are continuing in the same manner.  We really are not happy with these stances.”

Yet Ethiopia is committed to continue with the negotiation which should be led by Africans, he stressed.

Regarding the stance of Sudan on negotiations, Dina noted that they are promoting somebody else's agenda.

“With regard to particularly issues of data exchange raised by the Sudanese side, we promised that we are ready to give them the data on the filling of the dam and the safety of the dam even without reciprocity. Unfortunately, they are not accepting this because they are promoting the agenda of others. We believe this is a proxy position and they are promoting somebody else’s agenda.”

The safety of the dam, data exchange issues are settled and the Sudanese people know very well that they will benefit from this dam, the spokesperson pointed out.

On the Ethiopian side, Dina said “we have briefed African ambassadors about the issues this week and the ambassadors appreciated what Ethiopia is doing,  and are very much happy that we have very big respect for Africa and African positions as well.”