Egyptian official: Ethiopia dam negotiations in Washington ’a disaster’ | Mada Masr
▻https://madamasr.com/en/2020/01/16/feature/politics/egyptian-official-ethiopia-dam-negotiations-in-washington-a-disaster
Three days of negotiations in Washington between the foreign and irrigation ministers of Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan ended on Wednesday without an agreement over the filling schedule for the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, according to a joint statement by the three countries and the World Bank that was released by the US Treasury Department, which hosted the meeting.
The ministers agreed to hold further technical and legal talks before reconvening again in Washington on January 28 and 29 where they plan to finalize an agreement, the statement said. The three countries agreed to begin filling the dam in stages during the wet season between July and August and will aim for an initial level of 595 meters above sea level.
Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said on Thursday that Egypt is “cautiously optimistic that we are reaching a critical point” in the negotiations.
But Egyptian officials, who spoke to Mada Masr on condition of anonymity, say that Cairo finds itself in a weak negotiating position with little outside support and is coming under pressure to agree to a less than favorable dea❞