Washington Hints at Economic Privileges to Resolve Renaissance Dam Crisis

FILE - In this June 28, 2013 file photo, the Blue Nile river flows near the site of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam near Assosa, Ethiopia. (AP Photo/Elias Asmare, File)
FILE - In this June 28, 2013 file photo, the Blue Nile river flows near the site of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam near Assosa, Ethiopia. (AP Photo/Elias Asmare, File)
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Washington Hints at Economic Privileges to Resolve Renaissance Dam Crisis

FILE - In this June 28, 2013 file photo, the Blue Nile river flows near the site of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam near Assosa, Ethiopia. (AP Photo/Elias Asmare, File)
FILE - In this June 28, 2013 file photo, the Blue Nile river flows near the site of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam near Assosa, Ethiopia. (AP Photo/Elias Asmare, File)

US President Donald Trump has said Washington supports a "mutually beneficial" agreement among parties regarding an Ethiopian dam project on the Blue Nile.

Trump’s engagement in the talks seemed like a final attempt to exert pressure on Egypt and Ethiopia to resolve their dispute. The White House brought up economic privileges that help the three countries thrive in case they reached a solution.

His remarks came at a meeting in Washington among the US, Egypt, Ethiopia, and Sudan late Tuesday, according to a statement issued by the White House.

"Today, President Donald J. Trump met with the foreign and water resources ministers of Egypt, Ethiopia, and Sudan to discuss progress on Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam talks," it said. "The President reaffirmed United States support for a cooperative, sustainable, and mutually beneficial agreement among the parties.”

Trump emphasized that the US wants to see all the countries thrive and expressed hope they work together so that future generations may succeed and benefit from critical water resources.

The filling "will be executed in stages and will be undertaken in an adaptive and cooperative manner that takes into consideration the hydrological conditions of the Blue Nile and the potential impact of the filling on downstream reservoirs," said the statement.

The three foreign ministers "reaffirmed the importance of transboundary cooperation in the development of the Blue Nile to improve the lives of the people of Egypt, Ethiopia, and Sudan, and their shared commitment to concluding an agreement," it added.

They agreed on Wednesday to reconvene in Washington later this month to finalize an agreement on the dam on the Blue Nile that sparked a diplomatic crisis between Cairo and Addis Ababa. The ministers will hold technical and legal talks ahead of their Jan. 28-29 meeting in Washington, where they plan to finalize the agreement, the statement said.

A source from the US Treasury told Asharq Al-Awsat that Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and World Bank President David Malpass also met with foreign ministers and water resources officials from the three countries.

Officials from Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan said they have reached a preliminary agreement that should help clear the way for the filling and operation of the USD5 billion dam project.

In a joint statement, officials from the three countries said that they had agreed that the filing of the damn should be done in stages during the rainy season, which generally runs from July to August.

The dam is around 70 percent complete.

The Blue Nile – flowing from Ethiopia to Sudan – is a key stream given that its waters represent 85 percent of the river.



Lebanon PM Says Hopes for Ceasefire With Israel in 'Coming Hours or Days'

This handout picture provided by the Lebanese Prime Minister's press office shows Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati delivering a statement to the press in Beirut on October 11, 2024. (Photo by Lebanese Prime Minister's Press Office / AFP)
This handout picture provided by the Lebanese Prime Minister's press office shows Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati delivering a statement to the press in Beirut on October 11, 2024. (Photo by Lebanese Prime Minister's Press Office / AFP)
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Lebanon PM Says Hopes for Ceasefire With Israel in 'Coming Hours or Days'

This handout picture provided by the Lebanese Prime Minister's press office shows Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati delivering a statement to the press in Beirut on October 11, 2024. (Photo by Lebanese Prime Minister's Press Office / AFP)
This handout picture provided by the Lebanese Prime Minister's press office shows Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati delivering a statement to the press in Beirut on October 11, 2024. (Photo by Lebanese Prime Minister's Press Office / AFP)

Lebanon's prime minister said US envoy Amos Hochstein had signaled during a phone call Wednesday that a ceasefire in the Israel-Hezbollah war was possible before US elections are held on November 5.
"The call today with Hochstein suggested to me that perhaps we could reach a ceasefire in the coming days, before the fifth" of November, Najib Mikati said in a televised interview with Lebanese broadcaster Al-Jadeed.
Hochstein was heading to Israel on Wednesday to discuss conditions for a ceasefire with Hezbollah, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters.
Hezbollah's new leader Naim Qassem on Wednesday said the group would agree to a ceasefire with Israel under acceptable terms, but added that a viable deal has yet to be presented, reported AFP.
"We are doing our best... to have a ceasefire within the coming hours or days," Mikati told Al-Jadeed, adding that he was "cautiously optimistic".
Mikati said Hezbollah is no longer linking a ceasefire in Lebanon to a truce in Gaza, but criticized the group over its "late" reversal.
Previously, Hezbollah had repeatedly declared it would stop its attacks on Israel only if a ceasefire was reached in Gaza.
However, Qassem on Wednesday said the group would accept a ceasefire under conditions deemed "appropriate and suitable", without any mention of the Palestinian territory.
Mikati said a ceasefire would be linked to the implementation of the United Nations resolution that ended the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah.
Security Council Resolution 1701 states that only the Lebanese army and UN peacekeepers should be deployed in southern Lebanon, while demanding the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Lebanese territory.
"The Lebanese army is ready to strengthen its presence in southern Lebanon" and ensure that the only weapons and military infrastructure in the area are those controlled by the state, Mikati said.
He also said he would continue to try to shield Lebanon's only airport from attacks by Israel.
"I can guarantee that we will not give anyone an excuse to undermine our security or our air traffic," Mikati said.
Aid deliveries from Iran, Iraq and Algeria can "come by sea", he said, in order not to give Israel a pretext to launch strikes.
Mikati also said it was too dangerous to try to reopen Lebanon's main land border with Syria, which was put out of service by an Israeli strike this month.
"We sent a bulldozer to fill the crater at the crossing and it was bombed," Mikati said.
"We will not expose anyone to danger before we have full guarantees."