Ethiopia has once again accused Egypt of escalating what it called a “hostile rhetoric” surrounding the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), recently inaugurated on the Nile River.
In a statement released on Monday, Ethiopia’s Ministry of Water and Energy said Cairo’s policy and its “hostile rhetoric” over the dam stem from a “colonial mentality” that undermines Ethiopia’s legitimate right to use the waters of the world’s longest river.
“The rise of Ethiopia cannot be stopped despite the ill-advised maneuvers, interference, and attempts of its adversaries,” the ministry declared.
Ethiopia, which contributes around 85% of the Nile’s flow through the Abbay (Blue Nile), reaffirmed its commitment to national prosperity and dismissed any external pressure preventing it from utilising the river to meet its water needs.
The statement followed recent remarks by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi, who warned that Egypt “will not stand idly by” in the face of what he described as Ethiopia’s “irresponsible behavior.” He said his government would take all necessary measures to protect Egypt’s interests and water security.
Speaking at the opening of the 8th Cairo Water Week, themed “Innovative Solutions for Climate Resilience and Water Sustainability,” President Sisi reiterated that Egypt categorically rejects any unilateral actions on the Nile that disregard international norms, threaten the basin’s peoples, and undermine the principles of justice and stability.
In response, Ethiopia’s Ministry of Water and Energy reaffirmed that “Ethiopia’s rise as a regional power is an irreversible reality,” while condemning Cairo’s stance in negotiations over the dam’s management.
The ministry stressed that Ethiopia and other Nile Basin countries have long sought cross-border cooperation based on international law, but that Egypt “has never negotiated in good faith,” neither during the trilateral talks on the filling and operation of the GERD nor in the broader negotiations on the Nile Basin Cooperative Framework Agreement (CFA) — the only basin-wide treaty.
“Water security can only mean the equitable and reasonable use of the Nile by all riparian states,” the statement added, noting that the dispute could only be resolved through direct dialogue among the concerned parties.
The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam — Africa’s largest hydroelectric project — was officially inaugurated on 9 September 2025 on the Blue Nile, in the presence of several regional leaders. Egypt and Sudan, however, boycotted the ceremony in protest.
Built at a cost of $4.2 billion, with a storage capacity of 74 billion cubic metres and a generation capacity of 5,150 megawatts, the GERD is expected to reshape the balance of power among Nile Basin countries, particularly Ethiopia, Egypt, and Sudan.
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