The Foreign Ministry issued a statement refuting statements attributed to the Ethiopian minister of the Government Communication Affairs Office (GCAO) about the affects of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) on other countries.
In an interview with the Saudi, London-based newspaper Al-Sharq Al-Awsat, the Ethiopian minister Getachew Reda said his country is about to finish 70% of construction of the controversial dam.
Reda added that a technical report, for which Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan contracted two French companies to prepare for the impact of the dam on the three countries, has nothing to do with the current construction.
“The dam is being built and this will not be affected by the report, but if there is anyone who believes that he would affected after carrying out the study, then it is not our problem in Ethiopia,” Reda said.
The Egyptian Foreign Ministry said on Sunday that upon reading the statements, minister Sameh Shoukry instructed the Egyptian embassy in Addis Ababa to contact Reda and verify the statements with a reminder of the Declaration of Principles, signed in March 2015, which asserts commitment to achieving mutual interest, not harming any of the parties, and respecting the results of the technical reports.
Ministry spokesperson Ahmed Abou Zaid said the Egyptian embassy obtained comment from Reda that the statements attributed to him are not accurate.
“Ethiopia is committed to the declaration of principles signed with Egypt and Sudan regarding the renaissance dam,” he added.
The GERD has strained relations between Ethiopia and Egypt since construction began in 2011, with relations reaching their lowest point in 2013.
Members of the tripartite committee of the GERD are preparing to present their final review of the technical studies on the construction of the dam to the water ministers of the three countries.
Last December, Egypt, Ethiopia, and Sudan signed the Khartoum Document, addressing the ways to enforce and execute the declaration of principles.
