Sudan Boycotts Talks Over Ethiopia’s Mega-Dam

FILE PHOTO: A handout satellite image shows a closeup view of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) and the Blue Nile River in Ethiopia July 12, 2020. Satellite image ©2020 Maxar Technologies via REUTERS
FILE PHOTO: A handout satellite image shows a closeup view of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) and the Blue Nile River in Ethiopia July 12, 2020. Satellite image ©2020 Maxar Technologies via REUTERS
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Sudan Boycotts Talks Over Ethiopia’s Mega-Dam

FILE PHOTO: A handout satellite image shows a closeup view of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) and the Blue Nile River in Ethiopia July 12, 2020. Satellite image ©2020 Maxar Technologies via REUTERS
FILE PHOTO: A handout satellite image shows a closeup view of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) and the Blue Nile River in Ethiopia July 12, 2020. Satellite image ©2020 Maxar Technologies via REUTERS

Sudan boycotted talks on Saturday between Nile Valley countries over Ethiopia's controversial mega-dam, calling on the African Union to play a greater role in pushing forward the negotiations that have stalled for years.

It was the first time that Sudan refused to attend talks with Ethiopia and its northern neighbor Egypt, which has expressed for years its fears that the Ethiopian Grand Renaissance dam on the Blue Nile will dramatically threaten water supplies downstream.

Sudanese Irrigation Minister Yasser Abbas said in a statement that the current approach to reaching a tripartite agreement on the filling and operation of the Ethiopia's dam had not yielded results, and the AU should do more to “facilitate the negotiation and bridge the gab between the three parties.”

Sudan's boycott, however, could derail the complicated talks, which the AU has already taken the lead role in supporting, The Associated Press reported.

On Tuesday, the foreign and irrigation ministers of the three Nile Valley countries met online, two weeks after they failed to agree on a new framework for negotiations.

Africa’s largest hydroelectric dam has caused severe tensions with Egypt, which has called it an existential threat and worries that it will reduce the country’s share of Nile waters.

Ethiopia said the $4.6 billion dam will be an engine of development that will pull millions of people out of poverty. Sudan, in the middle, worries about the effects on its own dams, though it stands to benefit from access to cheap electricity.

Key questions remain about how much water Ethiopia will release downstream if a multi-year drought occurs and how the three countries will resolve any future disputes. Ethiopia has rejected binding arbitration at the final stage of the project.

As well as tension with its Nile Valley neighbors, Ethiopia was plunged earlier this month into a deadly internal conflict when its federal government launched a military attack on the northern Tigray region's administration.

The conflict threatens to pull in Ethiopia’s neighbors, which include Sudan, Somalia and Eritrea, whose capital came under rocket attack from the Tigray forces over the weekend. The fighting has sent over 35,500 Ethiopian refugees into Sudan.

Ethiopia rejected a US-crafted draft deal over its dam in February and went on with the first stage of filling of the dam’s massive reservoir, leading Washington to suspend millions of dollars in aid to Addis Ababa.



US Urges Baghdad, Erbil to Carry Out ‘Constructive Dialogue’

FILE PHOTO: An aerial view of Baghdad, Iraq, August 11, 2021. REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: An aerial view of Baghdad, Iraq, August 11, 2021. REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani/File Photo
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US Urges Baghdad, Erbil to Carry Out ‘Constructive Dialogue’

FILE PHOTO: An aerial view of Baghdad, Iraq, August 11, 2021. REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: An aerial view of Baghdad, Iraq, August 11, 2021. REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani/File Photo

The United States has urged Baghdad and Erbil “to resolve their issues through constructive dialogue consistent with their constitutional responsibilities” after rising tension over the payment of salaries in the Kurdistan region.

Tensions have escalated between Iraq’s central government in Baghdad and the semiautonomous Kurdish region in the country’s north in a long-running dispute over the sharing of oil revenues.

The central government has accused the Kurdish regional authorities of making illegal deals and facilitating oil smuggling. Baghdad cut off funding for public sector salaries in the Kurdish region ahead of the Eid al-Adha holiday. Kurdish authorities called the move “collective punishment” and threatened to retaliate.

“Resolving the salaries issue quickly sends a signal that Iraq is creating an environment in which US companies would want to invest,” US State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said Tuesday.

“Successful resolution would also send a positive signal on broader cooperation for the benefit of all Iraqis, such as reopening the Iraq-Türkiye pipeline and additional energy exploration, including with US companies,” Bruce said.

“US support for a strong and resilient Iraqi Kurdistan Region remains a crucial element of our relationship with Iraq,” she added.

Her remarks, which were seen as supportive of Baghdad, came as Sulaymaniyah - a city in the east of the Kurdistan Region – witnessed demonstrations on Wednesday over the delay in the payment of public sector salaries.

Employees in several departments announced an open-ended strike, saying they will not return to work unless the authorities pay them their wages.

The employees called on Erbil and the Baghdad government to assume their legal and humanitarian responsibilities, saying their living conditions require action.