Egypt, Sudan Seek UN Help to Resolve Mega Dam Dispute with Ethiopia

The foreign ministers of Egypt and Sudan appealed to the U.N. Security Council on Thursday to intervene in their dispute with Ethiopia over the operation of a mega dam on the Nile River.

“We come here in search for a viable path towards a peaceful, amicable and negotiated solution, and to avert the dire consequences of our inability to reach a settlement to this matter,” Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said. “Our expectation is that this council will take the necessary measures to ensure the parties engage in an effective process of negotiation that could yield an agreement that serves our collective interests,” he added. Tensions have escalated since Addis Ababa said Monday it had begun its second phase of filling the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam — or GERD, as it is known. Downstream neighbors Egypt and Sudan object, insisting that a legally binding agreement that governs how the dam is filled and operated must first be in place.