The government yesterday denied reports that some Nile Basin countries filed lawsuits against Egypt and Britain before the International Court of Justice, demanding compensation for the losses incurred by the Nile Basin countries due to the old agreements that were signed in 1929 and 1959 to regulate the Nile water quota, and set up projects in the Nile Basin countries. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued an official statement in response to the insinuations by a Tanzanian MP about the possibility of the Nile Basin countries filing compensation lawsuits against Egypt and Britain, because the two countries signed a joint agreement that deprives the Nile Basin countries of the resources of the river, according to him.
High-level sources said the Tanzanian MP is the only person to come up with such statements in an attempt to seek support, yet the MPs of most of the Nile Basin countries were against these irresponsible remarks. For his part, Dr. Mohamed Nasr Eddin Allam, Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation, said that Egypt is keen on activating cooperation with the Nile Basin countries, that it will not waiver its historical rights to the resources of the Nile River, and that the old conventions are recognized internationally and no one can question them by filing lawsuits to cancel them, or get special advantages in violation of the international law; the umbrella that all the nations of the world live under. The Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation also stressed that the old conventions regulating the Nile resources provide for these rights that are recognized by the international community, with all its various organizations. He pointed out that Egypt is not against development projects in the Nile Basin countries as long as they are consistent with these conventions, and that Egypt will continue to play its role to activate the cooperation with the Nile Basin countries for a joint exploitation of the resources of the river, so as not to cause any damage to the Nile Basin countries. Allam told Al-Masry Al-Youm: "Ethiopia is an important partner for Egypt and Sudan; particularly since 85% of the proceeds of the river to Egypt come from the Ethiopian plateau, which reflects the keenness of the political leadership on activating cooperation with Ethiopia. That is why there will be a meeting between the Ethiopian Minister of Irrigation Asfaw Dinamo and Prime Minister Dr. Ahmed Nazif following the conclusion of the meetings of the Ministerial Council, which is due to be held in the last week of July in Alexandria." On certain political trends in a number of Nile Basin countries that reject the old agreements signed with Egypt in 1929 and 1959, Allam said Egypt supports all Conventions that protect its historical rights to the Nile River. Ambassador Mona Omar, Assistant Foreign Minister for Foreign Affairs, in a press statement yesterday said that Egypt hosted in the past few days a conference of parliamentarians from the Nile Basin countries, who did not say anything about their countries filing lawsuits.
She added that the Tanzanian MP is known for his negative stances towards the Arabs in general. She also said that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not receive, from our embassies in the Nile Basin countries, any reports about them having such intention. In response to a question on whether Egypt received reservations from the Nile basin countries on the Egyptian-Ethiopian rapprochement, she said: "Egypt has strong relations with all Nile Basin countries, and we seek rapprochement with all of them."
