CAIRO – 5 July 2021: Egypt’s Irrigation Minister Mohamed Abdel Ati received on Monday an official letter from his Ethiopian counterpart Seleshi Bekele confirming that Ethiopia started the second phase of filling the reservoir of its controversial mega dam. This comes despite Egyptian and Sudanese rejection of the second filling of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), which Ethiopia builds on the Blue Nile, unless the three countries reach a legally-binding agreement on the dam. Ethiopia has reiterated its plans to implement the second phase of filling in July and through the rainy season whether a deal is reached or not. Rounds of African Union-sponsored talks have collapsed with Egypt and Sudan blaming the collapse of negotiations on Ethiopia’s intransigence. Abdel Ati said this act represents a clear and dangerous violation of the 2015 Declaration of Principles signed by the three countries.
