I disagree with those who claim the regime is conceding Egypt’s water rights. Nobody should make such a horrendous accusation. It’s inconceivable that any regime in the world, however incompetent, would deliberately forfeit an issue like this, a matter of life and death.
Thanks to the Nile, Egypt was the cradle of civilization. As divisions remain between upstream and downstream states, the Nile Basin countries’ failure to reach an agreement at Sharm el-Sheikh is a grave matter that we, as governments and peoples, should be concerned about.
Attributing this failure to some conspiracy against Egypt and Sudan, or to the downstream countries’ actions, or to a sudden greed on the part of the upstream countries is to evade responsibility. A way to avert potential armed confrontation over this issue must be found.
The first thing I believe we should all do is admit there is a global water crisis due to increasing consumption among growing populations. We must also admit the crisis is getting worse due to environmental and climate-related factors that are getting out of control.
That said, I don’t rule out a hidden foreign agenda behind the scenes trying to exploit the situation. Egypt and Sudan therefore need to act jointly on all fronts.
Egyptian foreign policy will not be able to tackle this challenge unless water is included as part of an overall strategy that faces all national security threats, most important of which is Israel.
