WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 07th November, 2019) US President Donald Trump on Wednesday said he hosted a meeting of officials from the three African nations of Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia to try and resolve their dispute over the use of the waters of Addis Ababa's giant new dam.
"Just had a meeting with top representatives from Egypt, Ethiopia, and Sudan to help solve their long running dispute on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam... currently being built," Trump said in a Twitter message. "The meeting went well and discussions will continue during the day!"
Experts believe that when the dam, one of the largest in the world, will inevitably lead to water shortages in downstream-located Sudan and Egypt. The three states have held over a dozen talks since the start of the construction, but the disagreements persist.
The controversy spiked earlier this year after media misquoted Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed as declaring his country's readiness to wage war, if needed, to defend its right for the dam's construction.
On October 24, Egyptian President Abdel Fatah Sisi and Ethiopia's Ahmed agreed to resume negotiations, in particular by resuming "the operation of the independent technical negotiating commission in a more open and positive format."
The agreement was reached at the Russia-Africa Summit and Economic Forum held in Sochi.
