Algeria offers mediation of Ethiopia Renaissance Dam dispute

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Algeria offers mediation of Ethiopia Renaissance Dam dispute

During his visit to Khartoum, Algerian Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra will propose his country’s mediation of the dispute over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, Anadolu Agency reported on Friday. Lamamra...

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During his visit to Khartoum, Algerian Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra will propose his country's mediation of the dispute over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, Anadolu Agency reported on Friday.

Lamamra has started a diplomatic tour of several African countries to discuss a number of issues, including cooperation between Algeria and other members of the African Union (AU).

Before travelling to Khartoum, Lamamra tweeted: "I had the honour today (Wednesday) to meet the President of the Republic of Ethiopia Sahle-Work Zewde, to whom I conveyed fraternal greetings and a message from President Abdelmadjid Tebboune."

"We discussed several topics related to strategic relations between Algeria and Ethiopia, the peace and security situation in our continent, as well as prospects for strengthening the African-Arab partnership," he added.

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Meanwhile, a Sudanese source revealed to Anadolu Agency that the aim of Lamamra's visit to Khartoum was to propose his country's mediation of the dispute relating to the Renaissance Dam, noting that he will fly to Cairo following his meetings with Sudanese officials.

The Sudanese Foreign Ministry announced that Lamamra passed a message from the Algerian president to the Chairman of the Sovereignty Council of Sudan Abdel-Fattah Al-Burhan.

At the same time, a diplomatic source told Anadolu Agency that Lamamra intended to propose his country's views on the tension between Ethiopia and Sudan regarding the dispute over Al-Fashqa farmlands situated at the Ethiopian-Sudanese border.

For 26 years, Ethiopian farmers have been controlling these farmlands after forcefully expelling Sudanese farmers.

Ethiopia claims that the farmlands are part of its soil, while Sudan claims that an Ethiopian-British agreement, signed in 1902 while Sudan was under British occupation, stated that these farmlands are located on Sudanese soil.