Ethiopia trying to get Sudan’s backing for filling the GERD? Sudan has rejected a proposal put forward by Ethiopia that would allow it to continue filling the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam next month, Reuters reports, citing a senior Sudanese official. The report doesn’t elaborate on what the Ethiopians were proposing, but the official dismissed it as “not real” and a “way to buy time.” Ethiopia plans to continue filling the dam’s reservoir next month when the rainy season begins, with or without an agreement with Egypt and Sudan.

Is a stop-gap solution still possible? The Sudanese irrigation minister has said the government is open to an interim agreement with Ethiopia, provided it meets several conditions. But according to the official, Ethiopia has put forward “impossible conditions” related to the division of the Nile River’s water, which Sudan considers non-negotiable.

Both Egypt and Sudan have appealed to the UN Security Council to act, and are likely to submit a draft resolution to the council in the coming days in an effort to pressure world powers to weigh in. Ethiopia, meanwhile, rejected the involvement of the UN and insisted on continuing with negotiations led by the African Union.