Monday, 25 May 2026
Egypt’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Immigration, Badr Abdelatty
Egypt declares deadlock in GERD negotiations with Ethiopia
Egypt’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Immigration, Badr Abdelatty, announced that negotiations with Ethiopia over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) have reached a complete deadlock.
Speaking on Saudi Arabia’s Al-Hadath channel on Wednesday, Abdelatty stated that the negotiation process has come to an end, emphasizing that Egypt reserves its rights under international law to defend its existential interests and water rights by all means if they are threatened or harmed.
Addressing the impact of the GERD on Egypt’s water security and the flow of the Nile, Abdelatty noted that divine providence has spared Egypt in recent years due to higher-than-average rainfall seasons.
However, he warned that the real danger lies in the potential for extended drought periods, which occur in the Nile Basin roughly every 70 years and can last between five and seven years.
He described such a scenario as catastrophic for Egypt and Sudan if no legally binding agreement is reached regarding the dam’s operation.
Abdelatty highlighted that a lack of coordination in the dam’s operation has already caused devastating floods in Sudan recently.
He stressed that the Nile is an international river, not subject to Ethiopia’s sole sovereignty, and that upstream countries cannot undertake projects that affect downstream nations without prior consultation.