Cairo demands UN action against neighbor

Egypt and Ethiopia have been at odds for years over the construction of a hydroelectric dam on the Blue Nile

Egypt has filed a complaint with the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), accusing Ethiopia of threatening regional stability with its alleged unilateral actions regarding the controversial Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) project on the Nile river.

According to Cairo’s foreign ministry, the move on Sunday came in response to a recent statement by Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed announcing the fifth phase of filling the GERD without consulting downstream states, particularly Egypt.

The dam is located on the Blue Nile River, which is the source of 97% of Egypt’s water. The infrastructure, which has been under construction since 2011, has a planned capacity of 5.15 gigawatts, which will make it the largest hydroelectric power plant in Africa once completed. However, it has been at the center of a dispute over its impact on downstream flows into Egypt and Sudan, both of which have expressed concern about the project.

On August 25, Ahmed posted photos on X (formerly Twitter) showing the opening of the dam’s spillways in Ethiopia’s Guba district, which he said released an additional 2,800 cubic meters of water per second.

“This carefully regulated release will significantly enhance agricultural productivity, boost power generation, and improve resource utilization throughout the region,” the Ethiopian prime minister stated.

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Egypt responded by calling the move “unacceptable” and a “continuation of Ethiopia’s provocative approach toward its neighbors.” It also violates international law, according to the foreign ministry, including the GERD Declaration of Principles signed in March 2015 by Addis Ababa, Cairo, and Khartoum, as well as the Security Council’s Presidential Statement of September 2021.

“Egypt has negotiated in good faith [with Ethiopia] for 13 years. The negotiations have been halted after it became clear to everyone that Addis Ababa wanted them to continue indefinitely as a cover while it created a de facto situation on the ground,” Cairo’s Foreign Minister Badr Abdel Atty wrote in the letter to the UNSC.

The complaint to the UNSC comes as tensions between the two African nations rise over Cairo’s support for Somalia, which is embroiled in a dispute with Addis Ababa over a Red Sea access deal.

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Ethiopia signed an agreement with breakaway Somaliland on January 1 to lease 20km (12 miles) of coastal land to build a marine force base, reportedly in exchange for recognition of the breakaway region’s independence. Egypt accused the landlocked state of being a source of regional instability and vowed to defend Mogadishu against threats to its security after the Somali government declared the deal illegal and described it as a land grab by its East African neighbor.

Last week, Egypt delivered military aid, including weapons, to Somalia for the first time in more than four decades, following a defense accord signed earlier this year.