President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi vowed Monday to protect Egypt’s water supply while striving for peace with the Nile upstream countries of Sudan and Ethiopia, which is building a controversial dam.

“Egypt will not go to war with its brothers,” Sisi said on state television, although Cairo fears its water supply will be affected by Ethiopia’s Grand Renaissance Dam.

Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry visited the Ethiopian capital last month for talks on the dam project on the Blue Nile.

Egypt relies almost totally on the Nile for irrigation and drinking water, and says it has “historic rights” to the river, guaranteed by treaties from 1929 and 1959.

Sisi also stressed that Egypt was investing in its military to protect national security.

Source: AFP