Egypt's Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry continued meeting with UN officials and ambassadors of different countries on Monday to explain the Egyptian position on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) issue, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry stated. Sudanese Foreign Minister Mariam Al-Sadiq Al-Mahdi is also in New York to discuss the GERD dispute. On Thursday, the Security Council is going to hold a session per the request of the two countries to discuss the GERD issue. According to the Egyptian Foreign Ministry, Shoukry held a series of meetings on Monday with ambassadors of the Arab Committee concerning the GERD developments file where they discussed coordination at the Security Council. He also discussed the latest developments with the permanent representatives of the Africa Group to the UN Security Council, as well as with permanent representatives of Estonia, Ireland, Mexico and Norway, currently non-permanent members of the Security Council. Ministry of Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Ambassador Ahmed Hafez stated that Minister Shoukry reviewed the Egyptian position during these meetings regarding the GERD, which is based on the need to reach a binding legal agreement on the filling and operation of the dam that takes into account the three countries' interests and preserves Egypt's water rights. Hafez added that these intensive meetings are taking place as part of the preparations for the upcoming session of the Security Council on the GERD issue.
