‘Cairo appreciates Kinshasa efforts to get dam negotiations underway’

Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukri delivered has delivered a message from President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi to Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi affirming Egypt’s keenness on the success of the kinshasa negotiations on the iissue of Ethiopia’s Renaissance dam. In the message, President Sisi expressed appreciation of  the effort made by the Democratic Republic of the Congo to launch a negotiating process that leads to a just,  balanced and legally binding agreement.

Minister Shoukri delivered the message while calling upon Congolese President Tshisekedi  in Kinshasa Sunday. The Egyptian foreign minister was visiting Kinshasa together with Irrigation and Water Resources Mohamed Abdel-Ati to attend the meeting sponsored by the Congolese president on the Ethiopian dam issue.

The message also emphasised that the agreement should come in a way that takes into account the interests of the three countries, Egypt, the Sudan and Ethiopia, strengthens the relations of integration and cooperation between them and deepens the bonds of friendship between their peoples.

The President’s message reaffirmed Egypt’s sincere political intention to reach the aspired agreement at the earliest opportunity and before the next flood season and that it will support President Tshisekedi’s efforts in this regard.

Egypt, President Sisi noted in the message, looks forward to the success of the Kinshasa meeting in launching an effective path of negotiations with the participation of international partners, thereby enabling the three countries to find solutions to controversial technical and legal issues in order to formulate a comprehensive agreement for filling and operating the dam.

During the meeting with the Congolese President, FM Shoukri also reviewed Egypt’s efforts over the course of a decade to reach an agreement on the dam.

Minister Shoukri stressed in this regard that Egypt has consistently provided solutions and proposals that take into account Ethiopian concerns in a manner that guarantees the achievement of its development goals and preserves the interests of the two downstream countries.