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Ethiopia turns to upstream countries amid Nile Dam dispute with Egypt

Ethiopia is trying to mobilize Nile Basin countries against Egypt when it comes to dispute over the Renaissance Dam.
(FILES) This file photo taken on December 26, 2019 shows a general view of the construction works at the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), near Guba in Ethiopia. - The Nile, Egypt's lifeline since Pharaonic days, faces massive strain from pollution, over-use and climate change -- and now the threat of a colossal dam being built far upstream in Ethiopia. When its London-sized reservoir starts to fill this summer, Egypt fears the mega-project will spell an existential threat to its teeming population of

CAIRO — The last round of talks held in Washington in late February on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) faltered to yield a comprehensive agreement on the filling and operation of the dam after Ethiopia withdrew from the negotiations. 

A State Department readout of a call between US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed on April 13 made no reference to the dam dispute. This comes at a time when the Trump administration, along with the World Bank, has been arbitrating discussions among Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan.

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