The White House said that US President Donald Trump discussed in a telephone conversation with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, a ceasefire in Libya and negotiations on the Ethiopian Renaissance Dam.

Yesterday (Wednesday), the White House said in a statement that Trump discussed with Sisi ways to resume UN ceasefire talks in Libya and "the departure of all foreign forces" from there.

This call comes in the wake of the series of accelerated victories achieved by the forces of the internationally recognized Libyan government of Al-Wefaq, as it managed, with Turkish support, to expel the forces of retired Major General Khalifa Haftar from the Libyan West, and put an end to his campaign launched 14 months ago to control the capital, Tripoli.

In the same context, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that the time has come for all Libyans and all parties to work to prevent "Russia or any other country from interfering in Libya's sovereignty for its own purposes."

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi called for a cease-fire in Libya as part of a political initiative welcomed by Russia and the UAE, but Turkey rejected this initiative and described it as an attempt to save Haftar after the losses suffered on the battlefield.

Renaissance Dam crisis

On the other hand, Trump and Al-Sisi discussed the Ethiopian Renaissance Dam file in light of meetings taking place to bridge views between Cairo and Addis Ababa.

The White House said that Trump reiterated the US commitment to facilitate a fair and balanced agreement between Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan on the Renaissance Dam.

Irrigation ministers from the three countries met on Wednesday via video technology for a second day, to discuss the resumption of negotiations on the dam.

The Egyptian Ministry of Irrigation said in a statement that there is a trend in Ethiopia to reopen the discussion on all issues, while sticking to the start of mobilization of the dam next month.

The ministry called on Addis Ababa to commit to not taking unilateral action by it to mobilize the dam until the end of negotiations and to reach an agreement, stressing that this negotiation should be in accordance with a document prepared by the World Bank and the United States last February.

Egypt had signed this document first, while Ethiopia refused to sign it.