Egypt, Sudan Carry Out Military Drills Amid Rising Tensions With Ethiopia - Military

CAIRO (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 31st March, 2021) Air forces and special forces of Egypt and Sudan carried out joint military exercises amid rising tensions with Ethiopia over the disputed Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, the Egyptian armed forces said on Wednesday.

The drills took place at Meroe Air Force Base in Sudan.

"Fighter jet units carried out several joint operations, targeting enemy facilities [simulated] and defending vital facilities," Egyptian army said in a statement.

Special forces of both countries "trained in assault and camouflage during special operations," the document read.

On Tuesday, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Sisi said that the region could become unstable if Egypt's rights to the Nile are affected and warned about the country's capabilities.

The Renaissance dam has been under construction since 2012 and will become the largest one in Africa upon completion.

However, the project has triggered disputes between Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan over fears that the dam would undermine the countries' water security.

Last year, Ethiopia announced that it began filling the dam's reservoir, which was protested by Egypt and Sudan. The recent announcement regarding the second filling of the dam in coming July during the monsoon season led to further escalation of relations between the three countries.

The latest round of trilateral negotiations in November did not prove fruitful as the sides failed to agree on the further procedure for talks. The next round is expected to be held in Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), in early April.