The Egyptian Minister of Irrigation and Water Resources Mohamed Abdel-Ati said that all scenarios are on the table for Egypt to preserve its rights to the Nile waters.
Abdel-Ati’s statements came on Saturday during an open dialogue organized by the Supreme Council for Media in al-Qanater al-Khairiya.
The minister’s comments came in reference to the second filling of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), which began at the beginning of July despite opposition from neighboring Egypt and Sudan.
He reassured the Egyptian people, guaranteeing the state’s ability to exercise its full rights over the waters even if negotiations fail.
He added that the Ethiopian people have the right to build projects and the Egyptians have the right to preserve their right to the source of life.
The UN Security Council held a meeting over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) issue on Thursday.
Abdel-Ati issued a statement Monday in which he said that he had received an official letter from his Ethiopian counterpart stating that Ethiopia has begun the process of filling the second filling of the GERD reservoir.
Egypt expressed its flat refusal of this unilateral measure, calling it a clear and dangerous breach of the Declaration of Principles Agreement.
Egypt and Sudan say they want a legally binding agreement on filling and operating the GERD, while Ethiopia is trying to evade such an agreement.
The construction of the dam, which began in 2011, is considered to be one of Egypt’s most serious water issues.
Egypt, which relies considerably on freshwater from the Nile, has voiced fears that the GERD would negatively impact the country’s water supply, and has insisted that measures be put in place to protect downstream countries in case of drought during the dam’s filling process.
Ethiopia, on the other hand, has stressed the importance of the project to bolster its economy, where more than half of the population currently lives without access to electricity.
