U.S. Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa Briefed on GERD

Addis Ababa, May 10/2021 ( ENA) U.S. Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa Jeffrey Feltman held discussion today with Water, Irrigation and Energy Minister Seleshi Bekele and GERD negotiating team about the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam and the ongoing tripartite negotiations.

During the discussion, the minister briefed the Special Envoy about the current status of the dam and the negotiations between the three countries.

The minister also responded to questions posed by the Special Envoy regarding the dam.

A member of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam Negotiating Group who attended the discussion, Gedion Asfaw said that the Special Envoy had talks about GERD with officials of Sudan and Egypt during his visit to the two countries.

The Special Envoy was briefed in detail the Ethiopian perspective about the dam, he added.

In the course of the discussion, the team noted that Ethiopia would carry on the second round filling of the dam this rainy season.

The filling will be carried out according to direction set by experts of all the three countries, he explained.

Recalling that disputes over many dams around the world have been resolved through discussion, Gedion said the issue of the GERD cannot also be resolved through conflict but through dialogue and negotiation.

In this regard, Ethiopia is committed to consolidating the tripartite negotiations mediated by the African Union, he stressed.

With regard to the role of observers, the Ethiopian team explained to the Special Envoy that observers are expected to provide support to the three countries but not intervene to violate the rights of anyone country.

The U.S. Special Envoy had conducted visits to Egypt, Sudan and Eritrea over the past week and discussed with leaders of the respective countries on bilateral and regional issues.