“We have asked for clarification on reports of the United States’ decision not to give the $130 million it assigned to Ethiopia,” Fitsum Arega, Ethiopia’s ambassador to the U.S., said on Twitter. Egypt, which depends on the Nile for most of its fresh-water needs, is opposed to any development it says will impact the flow downstream -- a position echoed by Sudan. Ethiopia is developing a 6,000-megawatt power plant at the dam, and has asserted a right to use the resource for its development. As part of its effort to end the impasse, the U.S. is considering cutting aid that could affect security, counter-terrorism and anti-human trafficking programs, Foreign Policy reported Aug. 28. Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan on Friday reached a deadlock in tripartite talks about the dam, Sudanese Irrigation Minister Yasser Abas said.

Source: Ethiopian News August 31, 2020 07:52 UTC