Because of Ethiopia's stances regarding the Renaissance Dam, Khartoum threatens to resort to the Security Council, and Cairo confirms its readiness for all possibilities

An informed source from the Sudanese delegation in the negotiations of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam said that Sudan would resort to the UN Security Council if Ethiopia refused to expand international mediation to include the United Nations, the European Union and the United States, as well as the African Union, which is currently mediating.

The source added, in an interview with Al-Jazeera, that it is not ruled out that Ethiopia would make concessions in this regard, which means returning to the negotiating table soon, as he put it.

No political will

For his part, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said on Sunday that "Ethiopia has not yet shown any real political will regarding the Renaissance Dam."

The Egyptian newspaper "Akhbar Al-Youm" quoted Shukry as saying that his country is continuing to strive to reach a fair agreement for all parties.

He added that "there is a preparation for all developments and possibilities, but we are committed to wisdom." He said, "There are partners (he did not name them) whom we trust who seek to bridge points of view."

Ethiopia did not immediately comment on what Shoukry said, but it usually exchanges accusations with Egypt about the stalled negotiations, and adheres to the second filling of the dam next July, despite the refusal of Egypt and Sudan and their adherence to reaching a prior agreement first.

National security and sticking points

On Saturday, the Sudanese Minister of Irrigation, Yasser Abbas, said in an interview with the Egyptian newspaper Al-Shorouk (especially) that his country "has the right to defend its national security through all legitimate means if efforts to expand the negotiations of the Renaissance Dam fail."

Abbas stated that "the sticking points in the negotiations are related to the systems and mechanisms for filling and operating the dam, the exchange of information and data, and how to deal with the successive and prolonged years of drought."

He stressed that these are "limited points at which an agreement can be reached, once there are good intentions and political will."

On March 9, Ethiopia rejected a Sudanese proposal, which Egypt supported in late February, to form a quadripartite international mediation that includes the United Nations, the United States, and the European and African Union to resolve the stalled Renaissance Dam negotiations over a period of 10 years.

After the visit of the Sudanese Prime Minister Abdullah Hamdouk Thursday to Cairo, Egypt and Sudan reconfirmed their adherence to the proposal, and sought to intensify international contacts in this regard, "in order to preserve regional stability," according to a statement by the Egyptian presidency.

Negotiations led by the African Union have been stalled for months, and have been stalled since last January, following a Sudanese demand to change the negotiation methodology in exchange for an Ethiopian reservation.