The Ethiopian Minister of Water and Irrigation, Seleshi Bagli, said that Sudan is the largest beneficiary of the Renaissance Dam, and that the concerns he talks about are counter to reality.

He added that "the concerns expressed by Sudan regarding the possibility that it will be affected by the process of the second filling of the dam are unreal and contrary to what Sudan witnessed last year, as the filling process took place naturally."

He stressed that the second filling of the dam will not harm Sudan, and in return, any attempt to obstruct this process is a great loss for Ethiopia, because it will lose one billion dollars.

The last round failed

The latest round of negotiations on the Renaissance Dam ended in failure to achieve any progress, after 4 days of continuous meetings held in Kinshasa, the capital of the Congo, which Egypt described as the last opportunity.

The three parties (Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia) were quick to exchange accusations regarding responsibility for the failure of the new round of negotiations.

These are the most prominent positions issued by the concerned parties after the end of the meetings:

The Egyptian position

The Egyptian Foreign Ministry said that the Kinshasa meetings, which started on Saturday, did not achieve progress and did not lead to an agreement on the re-launch of the Renaissance Dam negotiations.

It accused Ethiopia of rejecting all the proposals and alternatives put forward by Egypt and supported by Sudan to push the negotiations forward. It also said that it rejected Sudan's proposal, which was supported by Cairo, to form a quadripartite committee for mediation.

The Egyptian Foreign Ministry statement said, "This position once again reveals the lack of political will in Ethiopia to negotiate in good faith."

In telephone interviews with private Egyptian satellite channels, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry confirmed Tuesday evening that the Ethiopian side is obstinate and obstructs any effort, and that Egypt and Sudan have provided a lot of flexibility in the negotiations, indicating that Cairo and Khartoum will move towards international parties.

He stressed that his country had not received any notification from the African Union regarding new negotiations for the Renaissance Dam, noting that the Ethiopian statement regarding the Kinshasa negotiations on the dam was not related to the truth.

Before the start of the meetings, Egypt described it as the last chance to resume negotiations before Ethiopia began filling the dam for the second year in a row after the start of monsoon rains this summer.

Last week, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi said that "harming Egypt's water is a red line and will affect the stability of the region as a whole."

Egyptian media reported that the Egyptian Foreign Minister, Sameh Shoukry, arrived in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, on Tuesday evening, without yet announcing the purpose of the visit or the meetings that he would hold during it.

The Sudanese position

More than one position was issued by more than one party in the past hours after the announcement of the failure of the Kinshasa negotiations on the Renaissance Dam.

The Sudanese Minister of Foreign Affairs, Maryam Al-Sadiq Al-Mahdi, said in a tweet on Twitter that "the Ethiopian intransigence and Addis Ababa's insistence on the second filling without a binding agreement will make us think about options that preserve our interests and protect our people."

Al-Mahdi added that "the Ethiopian side rejected very persistently all the formulas and alternative solutions proposed by Sudan and Egypt confirming the absence of political will."

She stressed that Sudan will not neglect its national security despite its adherence to the peaceful approach.

In another situation, the Sudanese Ministry of Irrigation and Water Resources said - in a statement - that "this Ethiopian intransigence requires Sudan to think about all possible options to protect its security and its citizens, as guaranteed by international law."

For his part, the head of the Sudanese Sovereignty Council, Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, renewed his country's demands that it have a role in operating and managing the Renaissance Dam because it affects its security.

The Ethiopian position

On the other hand, the Ethiopian Foreign Ministry accused Egypt and Sudan of obstructing the discussions in the Congolese capital, Kinshasa, regarding the Renaissance Dam.

The Ethiopian Foreign Ministry clarified - in a statement - that Egypt and Sudan rejected the final draft of the statement, and demanded a role for observers to replace the three countries and the African Union, referring to the Quartet mediation (the African Union, the European Union, the United Nations and Washington).

The two countries of Sudan and Egypt had agreed on a proposal to involve the European Union, the United States and the United Nations in the negotiations, in addition to the current efforts of the African Union.

The Ethiopian Foreign Ministry statement said that the two countries followed an approach that sought to undermine the process led by the African Union, and also obstructed the resumption of negotiations.

She emphasized that Ethiopia could not be part of an agreement that would deprive it of its rights to use the Nile River.

Ethiopia expected that the meetings on the Renaissance Dam would resume in the third week of this month, at the invitation of the African Union, according to the same statement.

The American position

In this context, the State Department revealed that an American delegation traveled to the region to communicate with a number of partners on issues related to the Renaissance Dam, adding that the delegation stressed Washington's "neutral approach" towards the file.

The State Department said that Washington continues to support cooperative and constructive efforts by Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan to reach an agreement on the Grand Renaissance Dam.

The State Department indicated that the delegation listened to all concerned parties, including the Congolese presidency of the African Union, about the best ways in which the United States and the European Union could support efforts to find a way to achieve progress.

United nations

In a press conference held by Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for the Secretary-General of the United Nations, he called on the parties to continue cooperation and reach a compromise solution to settle the file.

Speaking to reporters about the position of the Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, on the Kinshasa negotiations, the spokesman continued, saying, "We on our part continue to urge the parties to continue to make efforts to take concrete steps to reach an agreement."

Dujarric added that the initiative of Felix Tshisekedi, President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to hold negotiations is welcome, with the international organization reaffirming its readiness to support these efforts as desired by the parties.

The Kinshasa tour came 3 months after the African Union-sponsored negotiations faltered, and after statements by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, on 30 March, that carried the strongest threatening tone to Addis Ababa since the outbreak of the crisis 10 years ago.

Al-Sisi said at the time that "the waters of the Nile are a red line, and we will not allow our water rights to be compromised, and any prejudice to Egypt's water will have a reaction that threatens the stability of the entire region."

Addis Ababa insists on a second filling of the dam with water, next July, even if no agreement is reached, while Cairo and Khartoum adhere to first reaching a tripartite agreement that preserves their water facilities and ensures the continued flow of their annual share of the Nile water, amounting to 55.5 billion. Cubic meters for Egypt, and 18.5 billion cubic meters for Sudan.