The
Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Arab Republic of Egypt, Mohamed
Kamel Amr and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Federal Democratic
Republic of Ethiopia, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus met in Addis Ababa
on Tuesday 18 June 2013.
The
two ministers reiterated their commitment to strengthen their bilateral
relations and coordinate their efforts to reach an understanding
regarding all outstanding issues between both countries in a manner of
trust and openness building on the positive developments of their
relations. Both ministers underlined their desire to deepen their
dialogue on a range of challenges that face the African continent in
general and the Nile Basin region in particular.
With
regard to the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, both ministers agreed,
as per the Terms of Reference of the International Panel of Experts, to
immediately initiate consultations among Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan, on
how to move forward with the implementation of its recommendations,
including the recommended studies to be conducted. In this regard, the
Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia welcomed the Egyptian initiative
to begin consultations amongst the Water Resources and Foreign
Ministers of the three countries, at the technical and political levels,
to ensure the implementation of the above-mentioned recommendations.
The
Egyptian Foreign Minister expressed Egypt’s concerns regarding the
possible effects of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam on Egypt’s water
use. The Ethiopian Foreign Minister, on his part, assured his Egyptian
counterpart that the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, which will be used
for power generation purposes, is being built in a way that addresses
Egypt’s water security concerns. In such context, both Ministers agreed
to take into account the developmental interests of Ethiopia as well as
the water security concerns of downstream countries.
Both
Ministers, in a spirit of brotherly relations and mutual understanding,
agreed to embark on consultations at the technical and political
levels, with the participation of the Republic of the Sudan, to
implement in a speedy manner the International Panel of Experts’
recommendations. In this context, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of
Ethiopia reiterated Ethiopia’s previous position, which is committed to a
win-win approach as the basis for future cooperation.
At
the end of their consultation, both sides agreed to exert the maximum
effort to strengthen the bilateral relations between the Arab Republic
of Egypt and the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia. Both ministers
stressed the need to continue the dialogue and communication with each
other in order to follow up on the outcome of this meeting. In this
context, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia accepted the
invitation by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Egypt to visit Cairo in the near future.
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