Egypt rejected on Monday statements made by Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed about Ethiopia’s intention to build a number of dams in different regions of the country, a statement released by Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ahmed Hafez said.
The statement also stressed that Ahmed’s comments once again reveals Ethiopia’s bad faith and its dealings with the River Nile and other international rivers that it shares with neighboring countries as they were domestic rivers subject to their sovereignty and harnessed to serve their interests.
“Egypt has always recognized the right of all the Nile Basin countries to establish water projects and exploit the resources of the River Nile in order to achieve development for its brotherly peoples,” the statement read.
“However, these water projects and facilities must be established after coordination, consultation and agreement with the countries that may be affected by them, especially the downstream countries,” the statement added.
It also pointed out that the statements of the Ethiopian prime minister are nothing but a continuation of the regrettable Ethiopian approach that violates the applicable rules of international laws. These laws regulate the use of international rivers and impose on Ethiopia to respect the rights of other riparian states to these rivers and not harm their interests.
