Egypt protests Ethiopia’s dam launch, citing breach of international law

Egypt has submitted a letter to the UN Security Council protesting Ethiopia’s inauguration of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam(GERD), citing breach of international law and the UN Charter.

Construction on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) began in 2011 with diplomatic tensions, particularly between Ethiopia, Sudan, and Egypt, who fear that reduced water flows could affect its share of the Nile.

In the letter addressed to the council’s president on Tuesday, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty said Addis Ababa’s inauguration of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) was “an unlawful unilateral act.”

“Any misconceptions that Cairo would turn a blind eye to its existential interests in the Nile are pure delusions. Egypt will not allow Ethiopia to impose unilateral control over shared water resources, ” the letter stated.

The ministry said that while Egypt has exercised maximum restraint and chosen diplomacy over confrontation, Ethiopia has “pursued intransigent positions, stalled negotiations, and sought to impose a fait accompli.”

It said that Addis Ababa’s recent steps represented “a new violation that adds to a long list of breaches of international law, including the Security Council’s presidential statement of Sept. 15, 2021.”

Further, Egypt warned that it reserves the right to take "all measures guaranteed by international law and the UN Charter" to safeguard its water security, language that hints at possible escalation if diplomacy fails.

"Egypt is committed to implementing international law on the Nile River but will not allow Ethiopian efforts to unilaterally dominate the management of water resources, and reserves its right to take all measures guaranteed by international law and the United Nations Charter to defend the existential interests of its people," it said.

The Ethiopian government inaugurated the GERD on the Blue Nile on Tuesday after 14 years of construction, a project that has long been disputed by downstream nations Egypt and Sudan over its filling and operation.

Despite years of negotiations under the African Union and international mediation, the three countries have yet to reach a legally binding agreement on long-term water management.