Ethiopian dam's declaration of principles not breached

Egypt's Ambassador to Ethiopia Abu Bakr Hefni said neither Ethiopia nor Sudan or Egypt breached the declaration of principles on the Ethiopian dam signed by the leaders of the three countries in Khartoum in March 2015.

In statements prior to the start of the 26th African Summit, Hefni added that Ethiopia did not breach the declaration agreement, especially Paragraph No. 5 on refraining from water storage behind the dam except following the agreement of the three parties.

This paragraph is quite clear, he reiterated.

Egypt enjoys a large support in Africa with regard to protecting its rights to the River Nile waters, in accordance with international law, Hefni said.

Egypt's new open policy towards Africa, especially concerning the establishment of effective economic partnerships, had a great impact on the stances taken by other African countries towards Egypt's viewpoint regarding the Ethiopian dam, he added.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi is keen on participating in all African summits and major events and pays special attention to all African issues, he said.

He highlighted Egypt's recent winning of the non-permanent UN Security Council seat for Africa and its election yesterday as a member in AU Peace and Security Council with a majority support are indications of the strong support of African countries to Egyptian stances.

In this context, Hefni unveiled that Egypt will be responsible for a file on forming a military force in northern Africa as part of efforts to form a joint African military force aiming to keep peace and security in the region.

Meanwhile, the Egyptian diplomat categorically denied any attempt by Egypt to launch a military action against Ethiopia.

This option is not on the table, especially that the Ethiopian brothers affirmed they would never harm the interests of Egypt and its people, he said.

In case Ethiopia breached the declaration of principles, Egypt would move at the international level on the basis of international laws securing the rights of downstream countries to water access, he concluded.

Source: MENA