عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Arab World

Japan Denounces, Rejects Polisario Front’s Participation at TICAD

Polisario Front movement leader Brahim Ghali attends the eighth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD), in Tunis, Tunisia, 27 August 2022. (EPA)
Polisario Front movement leader Brahim Ghali attends the eighth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD), in Tunis, Tunisia, 27 August 2022. (EPA)
TT
20
TT

Japan Denounces, Rejects Polisario Front’s Participation at TICAD

Polisario Front movement leader Brahim Ghali attends the eighth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD), in Tunis, Tunisia, 27 August 2022. (EPA)
Polisario Front movement leader Brahim Ghali attends the eighth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD), in Tunis, Tunisia, 27 August 2022. (EPA)

Japan condemns the participation of the separatist Polisario Front in the eighth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD), which was held on August 27 and 28 in the Tunisian capital, Tunis.

The Japanese delegation made a statement during the proceedings of the first plenary session of the summit, in which it reaffirmed that “TICAD is a forum for discussion on the development of Africa,” Morocco’s official news agency MAP reported.

“The presence of any entity that Japan does not recognize as a sovereign state at TICAD meetings, including the senior officials meeting and the summit meeting, does not affect Japan’s stance regarding the status of this entity,” the statement stressed, in reference to the Polisario’s self-proclaimed Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR).

It reiterated the position already expressed by Tokyo that the invitations to the summit, which were to be issued exclusively and jointly by Tunisia and Japan, were sent only to states officially recognized by Tokyo and not subject to sanctions by the African Union.

The host country, consequently, imposed a fait accompli on Japan’s delegation, undermining the solemnity and serenity that should have marked this important meeting for the Japanese-African partnership.

On August 19, Japan expressed its categorical and unequivocal rejection of the AU Commission’s invitation to the Polisario to attend the summit, saying it violated the procedure duly agreed.

Tunisia dismissed Japan’s objection.

Morocco, meanwhile, recalled its Tunis ambassador for consultations and cancelled its own participation in the high-profile conference, especially after Tunisian President Kais Saied welcomed Polisario chief Brahim Ghali at Carthage International Airport.

Most Viewed

 
Arab World

Egypt Says GERD Lacks Legally Binding Agreement

This grab taken from video shows Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam in the Benishangul-Gumuz region, Ethiopia, Feb. 20, 2022. (AP Photo)
This grab taken from video shows Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam in the Benishangul-Gumuz region, Ethiopia, Feb. 20, 2022. (AP Photo)
TT
20
TT

Egypt Says GERD Lacks Legally Binding Agreement

This grab taken from video shows Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam in the Benishangul-Gumuz region, Ethiopia, Feb. 20, 2022. (AP Photo)
This grab taken from video shows Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam in the Benishangul-Gumuz region, Ethiopia, Feb. 20, 2022. (AP Photo)

Egypt said Friday that Ethiopia has consistently lacked the political will to reach a binding agreement on its now-complete dam, an issue that involves Nile River water rights and the interests of Egypt and Sudan.

Ethiopia’s prime minister said Thursday that the country’s power-generating dam, known as the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), on the Nile is now complete and that the government is “preparing for its official inauguration” in September.

Egypt has long opposed the construction of the dam, because it would reduce the country's share of Nile River waters, which it almost entirely relies on for agriculture and to serve its more than 100 million people.

The more than the $4 billion dam on the Blue Nile near the Sudan border began producing power in 2022. It’s expected to eventually produce more than 6,000 megawatts of electricity — double Ethiopia’s current output.

Ethiopia and Egypt have spent years trying to reach an agreement over the dam, which Ethiopia began building in 2011.

Both countries reached no deal despite negotiations over 13 years, and it remains unclear how much water Ethiopia will release downstream in case of a drought.

Egyptian officials, in a statement, called the completion of the dam “unlawful” and said that it violates international law, reflecting “an Ethiopian approach driven by an ideology that seeks to impose water hegemony” instead of equal partnership.

“Egypt firmly rejects Ethiopia’s continued policy of imposing a fait accompli through unilateral actions concerning the Nile River, which is an international shared watercourse,” Egypt’s Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation said in a statement Friday.

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, in his address to lawmakers Thursday, said that his country “remains committed to ensuring that our growth does not come at the expense of our Egyptian and Sudanese brothers and sisters.”

“We believe in shared progress, shared energy, and shared water,” he said. “Prosperity for one should mean prosperity for all.”

However, the Egyptian water ministry said Friday that Ethiopian statements calling for continued negotiations “are merely superficial attempts to improve its image on the international stage.”

“Ethiopia’s positions, marked by evasion and retreat while pursuing unilateralism, are in clear contradiction with its declared willingness to negotiate,” the statement read.

However, Egypt is addressing its water needs by expanding agricultural wastewater treatment and improving irrigation systems, according to the ministry, while also bolstering cooperation with Nile Basin countries through backing development and water-related projects.