. Earth Science News .
WATER WORLD
Ethiopia accuses Trump of inciting 'war' over Nile dam
By Robbie COREY-BOULET
Addis Ababa (AFP) Oct 24, 2020

Trump suggests Egypt may 'blow up' Ethiopia dam
Washington (AFP) Oct 23, 2020 - US President Donald Trump on Friday voiced anger at Ethiopia over its construction of a huge dam on the Nile River and appeared to suggest that Egypt may destroy it.

Trump made the remarks as he announced a breakthrough normalization deal between US ally Israel and Sudan, which like Egypt fears that Ethiopia will use up scarce water resources.

"It's a very dangerous situation because Egypt is not going to be able to live that way," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office with leaders of Sudan and Israel on speakerphone.

"They'll end up blowing up the dam. And I said it and I say it loud and clear -- they'll blow up that dam. And they have to do something," Trump said.

"They should have stopped it long before it started," Trump said, regretting that Egypt was in domestic tumult when the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam project began in 2011.

Trump -- a close ally of Egypt's general turned president, Abdel Fattah al-Sisi -- had agreed to Cairo's pleas to mediate over the dam, with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin leading talks.

The State Department in September said it was cutting off aid to Ethiopia due to its decision to begin filling the dam despite not reaching an agreement with the downstream nations.

"I had a deal done for them and then unfortunately Ethiopia broke the deal, which they should not have done. That was a big mistake," Trump said.

"They will never see that money unless they adhere to that agreement," he said.

Ethiopia says that the $4 billion project is indispensible for its electrification and development needs and has voiced hope of beginning operations in early 2021.

Egypt depends on the Nile for about 97 percent of its irrigation and drinking water.

Sudan's Prime Minister Abdulla Hamdok, asked by Trump on speakerphone about the dam, voiced appreciation for US diplomacy and said his government wanted an "amicable solution soon" among the three countries.

Ethiopia on Saturday accused Donald Trump of inciting "war" over a massive Nile River mega-dam after the US president spoke out against the project and suggested Egypt might destroy it.

Foreign Minister Gedu Andargachew summoned US ambassador Michael Raynor to clarify Trump's comments, which mark the US president's latest foray into a delicate, long-running dispute between Ethiopia and downstream neighbours Egypt and Sudan.

Gedu told Raynor that "the incitement of war between Ethiopia and Egypt by a sitting US president neither reflects the long-standing partnership and strategic alliance between Ethiopia and the United States, nor is acceptable in international law governing interstate relations," the foreign ministry said in a statement.

Ethiopia was responding to comments about the dam, known as the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, made by Trump on Friday during a ceremony marking a breakthrough normalisation deal between Israel and Sudan.

"It's a very dangerous situation because Egypt is not going to be able to live that way," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.

"They'll end up blowing up the dam. And I said it and I say it loud and clear -- they'll blow up that dam. And they have to do something," Trump said.

Also on Saturday, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's office issued its own statement defending the dam and noting that Ethiopia was committed to African Union-led talks which it said had made "significant progress".

"Nonetheless, occasional statements of belligerent threats to have Ethiopia succumb to unfair terms still abound. These threats and affronts to Ethiopian sovereignty are misguided, unproductive, and clear violations of international law," the statement said.

"Ethiopia will not cave in to aggressions of any kind."

A separate version of the statement issued in Amharic featured more muscular language.

"There are two facts that the world has certified. The first is that there has been no one who has lived in peace after provoking Ethiopia. The second is if Ethiopians stand united for one purpose, it's inevitable they will triumph," it said.

Egypt depends on the Nile for about 97 percent of its irrigation and drinking water and sees the dam as an existential threat.

Ethiopia, meanwhile, sees the dam as essential for its electrification and development.

- Deal 'within reach'? -

Washington's attempt to broker a deal to resolve the dam issue ended in failure earlier this year after Ethiopia accused the Trump administration of favouring Egypt.

The US announced last month it was suspending a portion of its financial aid for Ethiopia, citing lack of progress on talks and Ethiopia's "unilateral decision" to start filling the dam's reservoir.

The State Department told The Washington Post earlier this month that the amount of aid "currently impacted by the temporary, partial pause" was "approximately $264 million".

Many Ethiopian officials see Trump as blinded by his allegiance to Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.

"Sorry to say but the man doesn't have a clue on what he is talking about. Ethiopia and Ethiopians will never be threatened by such irresponsible statement," Hailemariam Desalegn, Abiy's predecessor as prime minister, said Saturday on Twitter.

Josep Borrell, the EU's chief diplomat, said in a statement Saturday that a deal on the dam was "within reach".

"Now is the time for action and not increasing tensions," he said.


Related Links
Water News - Science, Technology and Politics


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


WATER WORLD
Turkey seeks new life for submerged tourist town
Hasankeyf, Turkey (AFP) Sept 28, 2020
Just two roofs poke through the vast expanse of an artificial lake that has swallowed a Turkish town whose caves and pre-Ottoman ruins once drew in global tourists. The dust settling from the hammering of construction sites around the Tigris River lake outlines the makings of a brand new city, with an unfinished bazaar and roads that are all works in progress. But trader Abdurrahman Gundogdu worries whether the new version of Hasankeyf in Turkey's mostly Kurdish southeast will ever recapture the ... read more

Comment using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.



Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

WATER WORLD
International Charter for disasters 20 years on

Landslide kills 11 miners in Indonesia

DLR robotic vehicles will support deliveries in difficult areas for the World Food Program

11 soldiers dead, 11 missing in Vietnam after second big landslide in days

WATER WORLD
Current Chernobyl-level radiation harmful to bees: study

Making two-dimensional quantum materials using curved surfaces

FEFU scientists helped design a new type of ceramics for laser applications

UCI materials scientists discover design secrets of nearly indestructible insect

WATER WORLD
Depths of the Weddell Sea are warming five times faster than elsewhere

Climate change driving mussel, barnacle, snail declines along Maine coast

'Like the speed of the wind': Kenya's lakes rise to destructive highs

Mexico strikes deal with US to settle water debt

WATER WORLD
Biggest North Pole mission back from 'dying Arctic'

Meltwater lakes are accelerating glacier ice loss

Arctic odyssey ends, bringing home tales of alarming ice loss

Antarctic Peninsula at warmest in decades: study

WATER WORLD
EU ministers back farm reform with environment rules

Aerial images detect and track food security threats for millions of African farmers

New grafting technique yields more productive, resilient plants, crops

Satellite imagery and broadband set to grow four fold in Precision Ag Market by 2029

WATER WORLD
Wildfires can cause dangerous debris flows

Floods kill 111 in central Vietnam, Storm Saudel on the way

Scientists improve model of landslide-induced tsunami

Major quake off Alaska triggers small tsunami waves

WATER WORLD
Six Chad soldiers killed by Boko Haram fighters: army

More than 10 Somali soldiers killed in Shabaab ambush

12 Mali soldiers killed in raids on base

Nigeria dissolves special police unit after protests: presidency

WATER WORLD
How'd we get so picky about friendship late in life? Ask the chimps

Cognitive elements of language have existed for 40 million years

Turbulent era sparked leap in human behavior, adaptability 320,000 years ago

Neural pathway crucial to successful rapid object recognition in primates









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.