“Washington is very concerned” .. “new” statements by the commander of the US Central Command regarding the Renaissance Dam
General Kenneth McKenzie.
The commander of the US Central Command "Centcom", General Kenneth McKenzie, said that Ethiopia's behavior towards the Renaissance Dam worries Washington a lot.
General McKenzie, in an interview with the "Nile News" channel, praised Egypt's exercise of a great deal of restraint and its attempt to reach a diplomatic and political solution.
The commander of the US Central Command pledged to resume seeking an acceptable solution to the crisis of the Renaissance Dam, between Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia, considering that the dam file is "very worrying."
McKenzie said that the file of the Renaissance Dam is a real problem, and we will continue to try to find a solution that is acceptable to Egypt and the rest of the parties (Sudan and Ethiopia).
He stated that Washington is aware of the unique importance of the Nile River to Egypt, not only in terms of culture, but also water resources and the economy in general.
General Kenneth McKenzie affirmed his country's keenness to support the strategic partnership and military cooperation between the Egyptian armed forces and the United States in a way that meets the common interests between the two countries.
Earlier, the US State Department called for the urgent resumption of negotiations on the Renaissance Dam, noting that the upcoming decisions will have significant repercussions on the peoples of the region.
It is noteworthy that the Egyptian Minister of Irrigation, Mohamed Abdel-Aty, had confirmed earlier that his country would not accept unilateral action to fill and operate the Ethiopian dam, adding that the current negotiations track under the auspices of the African Union will not make any significant progress.
Last April, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi warned Ethiopia against “compromising Egypt’s water rights,” stressing that “all options are open.”
Ethiopia began building the Renaissance Dam on the Blue Nile in 2011 with the aim of generating electricity. Egypt fears the impact of the dam on its share of 55.5 billion cubic meters of Nile water;
Sudan fears the impact of the dam on the Sudanese dams on the Blue Nile.
All rounds of negotiations, which began about 10 years ago, failed to reach a binding agreement regarding the filling and operation of the dam.
Ethiopia has confirmed on more than one occasion its intention to complete the second filling of the Renaissance Dam in the rainy season, at the beginning of next July, regardless of the conclusion of an agreement with the two downstream countries.
Egypt and Sudan consider Ethiopia's second filling of the Renaissance Dam without reaching an agreement a threat to the national security of the two countries.
Egypt and Sudan previously proposed a four-way mediation involving the United States, the United Nations, the European Union and the African Union, while Addis Ababa adhered to the path supervised by the African Union.
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