Mursi calls for meeting with parties over Ethiopia’s Renaissance Dam

Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi on Sunday called for a meeting with political parties to discuss the crisis surrounding Ethiopia’s plans to build a dam which could affect Egypt’s share of Nile waters.

Mursi’s call came after an Ethiopian government official said an independent panel of experts has concluded that the country’s multi-billion dollar hydropower Renaissance Dam being built on the Nile River will not significantly affect Sudan and Egypt, countries that are highly dependent on the water of the world’s longest river.

The Ethiopian official, who insisted on anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly on the topic, said late Saturday the final report by the panel of experts, which included representatives from Egypt and Sudan, concluded after a year-long study that the dam’s construction meets international standards.

Egypt in the past has threatened to go to war over its “historic rights” to Nile River water but diplomats from both countries this week played down the potential for conflict over the construction of the dam.