Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed announced that his country is proceeding with the second filling of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, which Addis Ababa is building on the Blue Nile, a major tributary of the Nile River. In tweets on Twitter, Ahmed stated that the second phase of the dam's filling will take place during the upcoming rainy season, specifically in July and August. However, he asserted that the second filling "will reduce flooding in Sudan." The Ethiopian Prime Minister also expressed that his country "intends to meet its needs from the Nile River and has no intention of harming the downstream countries (Egypt and Sudan)." He added, "The dam prevented severe flooding in Sudan last year."
These new statements indicate that Addis Ababa is determined to begin the second phase of the reservoir filling during the rainy season, a move that Cairo and Khartoum view with great concern. The latest round of negotiations in Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, concluded in early April without reaching an agreement between Ethiopia, Egypt, and Sudan. Egypt and Sudan claim that Ethiopia is responsible for the failure of the negotiations, described as the "last opportunity," due to its obstinacy and refusal to sign a binding agreement regarding the dam. In recent weeks, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi warned that any harm to his country's share of Nile waters would prompt a response "that would affect the stability of the entire region."
