Museveni in Egypt for high-stakes meeting with El-Sisi amid rising Nile tensions
The visit follows weeks of diplomatic courtship, including direct phone calls and formal exchanges, and comes at a time when both countries are recalibrating their strategic interests.
Uganda's president, Yoweri Museveni, is in Cairo for a rare high-level meeting with Egypt's Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, a sign of renewed efforts to tighten bilateral ties as disputes over the Nile and instability in the Horn of Africa intensify.
The visit follows weeks of diplomatic courtship, including direct phone calls and formal exchanges, and comes at a time when both countries are recalibrating their strategic interests.
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Analysts see the trip as a bid to position themselves ahead of potentially fraught negotiations on water rights and regional security.
The Nile—lifeline to millions across north-east Africa—has long been a diplomatic fault line.
Egypt, the dominant downstream power, has anchored its influence on colonial-era treaties that guarantee it a generous share of the river's flow.
Uganda, an upstream state, is now pressing ahead with hydropower and development projects, signalling a shift in the balance.
"As Uganda expands its hydropower infrastructure, it is seeking a more equitable share of Nile resources," observes Janet Kisembo, a Kampala-based water governance expert.
Museveni's visit, she adds, is "both strategic and symbolic."
Beyond water politics, the two countries share three decades of security cooperation, from military training to intelligence and counter-terrorism.
Talks in Cairo are also expected to cover Sudan's spiralling conflict, which threatens both with refugee inflows and disrupted trade routes.
With the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam dispute unresolved and Sudan sliding deeper into violence, the meeting is as much about crisis management as it is about long-term alignment.
Whether it produces tangible agreements—or merely signals intent—will determine if this Nile summit becomes a turning point in regional diplomacy or just another carefully staged handshake.
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