The United States has thrown its support behind a new technical initiative to address the long-running dispute between Ethiopia and Egypt over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), a massive hydropower project that has heightened regional tensions over Nile River water rights for more than a decade.
Speaking to Al Arabiya Arabic, Massad Boulos, Senior Adviser to U.S. President Donald Trump on African, Arab, and Middle Eastern Affairs, said the Biden administration’s earlier politicization of the issue has given way to a focus on “technical solutions, not political pressure.”
“The GERD issue must be resolved through technical means, not political pressure,” Boulos said, in remarks that analysts say reflect a broader rethinking of U.S. engagement in Africa.
“We are working to find a solution suitable for all parties, especially on the technical side, as it is purely a technical matter that must be resolved in a technical way.” He added that the project “is now a reality” whose future “must be managed within that reality.”
A new phase for Washington, Cairo, and Addis Ababa
The remarks have been interpreted as a potential policy reset. For years, the GERD issue has been a diplomatic flashpoint in Northeast Africa, with Egypt expressing fears the dam could threaten its share of Nile waters, while Ethiopia has maintained that the project is essential for its energy independence and regional growth.
According to the Ethiopian Institute of Foreign Affairs (EIFA), the shift from Washington marks “a long-overdue recognition” that the $4.8 billion dam has moved beyond political debate into a cooperative phase focused on sustainable development and regional energy security.
For Ethiopia, the U.S. acknowledgment represents validation of its consistent position that the GERD is primarily a technical and developmental project.
For Washington, the new approach signals a maturing foreign policy toward Africa, one less anchored in alignment with individual capitals and more in fostering pragmatic, regionally owned solutions.
As Boulos emphasised, managing the GERD “within reality” could redefine how the U.S. engages with African-led infrastructure and development challenges going forward.
