Aside from the Suez Canal jam, the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam was again in the limelight on last night’s talk shows, as Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry phoned Yahduth fi Misr’s Sherif Amer for a chat about the latest developments and the path forward (watch, runtime: 11:27).

There’s still a possibility that Egypt, Sudan, and Ethiopia will reach an agreement and avoid “complicating” the relationship between the three countries, as long as there is a real willingness to achieve that goal, Shoukry told Sherif Amer. Egypt sees potential for a “fruitful” and mutually beneficial relationship with Ethiopia in several other areas that could help our neighbors to the south grow and develop if they take a less hostile stance towards Egypt on the GERD issue, the minister said .

The international community wants to see a binding agreement and international players — including the EU, US, and UN — are willing to act as mediators in the negotiations, Shoukry told Amer (watch, runtime: 2:25). Ethiopia has rejected Sudan’s proposal to bring in international mediators alongside the African Union, which has been sponsoring but not mediating the talks.

Meanwhile, Egypt is continuing to rally international support for its position in the talks, particularly from other African countries. The latest example is President Abdel Fattah El Sisi’s meeting with Burundi’s president yesterday, which Ala Mas’ouleety’s Ahmed Moussa said “sent a message” to the world (watch, runtime: 8:08).

Also on the diplomacy front: The UK is planning to invest “heavily” in Egypt’s science and technology development, in addition to doubling down on cooperation between the two countries on security and anti-terrorism efforts, British Ambassador to Egypt Geoffrey Adams said in a pre-recorded message aired on Yahduth fi Misr (watch, runtime: 3:09). These plans come as the UK recasts its foreign policy after Brexit.