Egypt, Ethiopia compete for US support in Nile dam file & More News Here

Ethiopia has appointed former Minister of Water, Irrigation and Energy Seleshi Bekele as a brand new ambassador to the United States, in a transfer aimed to counter Egyptian efforts to attract US support in its favor in the yearslong dispute with Addis Ababa over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD).

Bekele, a former chief negotiator in the GERD talks with Egypt and Sudan, introduced May 6 a replica of his credentials to the US Department of State as his nation’s new ambassador. “I will now serve as appointed Ambassador of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia and Chief of Mission,” Bekele tweeted.

He mentioned bettering Ethiopian-US relations shall be his primary job throughout his capability because the Horn of Africa nation’s chief diplomat in Washington. “I, together with the diplomatic staff of the mission, look forward to execute the honored duties and responsibilities of strengthening diplomatic relation of the two great nations,” the ambassador-designate added.

Analysts see Bekele’s appointment as an effort by Addis Ababa to advertise its viewpoint concerning the GERD dispute with Egypt and Sudan in addition to the battle in Ethiopia’s Tigray area.

Cameron Hudson, senior fellow on the Atlantic Council’s Africa Center, mentioned Bekele’s appointment as a brand new ambassador is an try by Addis Ababa to reset the tone of its relation with the United States.

“That applies as much to relations related to the war in Tigray, the border dispute with Sudan and the application of US sanctions as much as it does to the GERD,” Hudson advised Al-Monitor.

Egypt, which relies upon virtually fully on the Nile River for its water provide, views the GERD as an existential menace to its water share. Ethiopia says the dam, Africa’s largest hydroelectric venture that’s being constructed close to the border with Sudan on the Blue Nile, a primary tributary of the Nile River, is not going to hurt Egypt and Sudan, two downstream nations.

Bekele’s appointment as Ethiopia’s new ambassador to the United States got here only a few weeks after Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry visited Washington for talks with US officers on a bunch of points, together with the GERD. This go to got here as the 2 nations marked 100 years of bilateral diplomatic relations.

Diplomatic sources advised Al-Araby Al-Jadeed newspaper that Shoukry requested the US administration to stress Addis Ababa to have interaction in a brand new spherical of negotiations with Cairo and Khartoum to achieve an settlement on the filling and operation of the GERD.

The Nile dam talks between Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan got here to a halt final 12 months after the three nations failed to achieve an settlement on the GERD. The three nations traded blame for the obstruction of the talks.

In 2020, the previous US administration of Donald Trump brokered negotiations between Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan to achieve a binding settlement on the GERD filling and operation.

The tripartite talks resulted in a US-mediated draft deal to resolve their dispute. Egypt initialed the settlement, however Ethiopia skipped the signing ceremony and accused Trump of siding with Cairo. Sudan attended the assembly however didn’t signal.

On May 11, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi renewed his name for reaching an settlement on the GERD throughout his talks in Cairo with US nationwide safety adviser Jake Sullivan.

A presidency assertion mentioned talks between Sisi and Sullivan took up a bunch of points, together with the GERD file. Sisi burdened Egypt’s agency place on the need of reaching a legally binding settlement on the GERD operation, in a approach that preserves Egyptian water safety and achieves the widespread pursuits of each Cairo, Khartoum and Addis Ababa.

The Egyptian chief’s name got here as Ethiopia prepares to hold out a third-stage filling of the GERD subsequent month regardless of opposition from each Egypt and Sudan.

In his capability as a water minister, Bekele resisted Egyptian stress to achieve a binding settlement on the GERD filling and operation and accused Cairo and Khartoum of disrupting the negotiations to achieve a deal.

“Bekele had pursued a hawkish position during the GERD negotiations with Egypt and Sudan,” Abbas Sharaky, professor of geology and water assets at Cairo University, advised Al-Monitor over the telephone.

He mentioned Bekele is a college professor who has a deep educational background on water assets and has authored a number of varieties of analysis on the Nile River.

“His appointment as an ambassador to Washington is an attempt by Ethiopia to promote its water projects in the United States, particularly the GERD,” Sharaky opined.

Hudson, nonetheless, believes that any enchancment in the Ethiopian-US relations will not less than for now be secondary to the Tigray battle and an finish of the federal government’s humanitarian blockade on the area.

The Tigray battle erupted in November 2020 after Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed despatched his troops into the area, alleging an assault on a military base by Tigrayan forces. Tens of 1000’s of persons are feared to have died in the battle.

Last month, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken referred to as for a negotiated cease-fire in Tigray and for the restoration of important companies to the area.

“If Addis is not able to positively address the situation on the ground in Tigray, it is hard to imagine any progress being made in any other part of the bilateral relationship, including the GERD,” Hudson mentioned.

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