The Egyptian and Ethiopian leaders have met for the first time to
discuss tensions over Ethiopia's construction of a huge hydropower dam
on the river Nile but the meeting ended without any agreement, sources
said.The Egyptian interim president, Adly Mansour, and Ethiopia's prime
minister, Hailemariam Desalegn, met on Tuesday on the sidelines of an
Afro-Arab Summit in Kuwait.It was the first meeting between leaders of the two countries over
the Grand Renaissance Dam since the deposed Egyptian president, Mohamed
Morsi, met Hailemariam in May.Ethiopia began diverting the Blue Nile in May to build what will be
Africa's largest dam when it is finished in 2017. Thirty percent of its
construction has already been completed, according to Ethiopia. The
hydropower station will have a 6,000-megawatt capacity when finished.Egypt, almost totally dependent on the river, fears the dam
could diminish its water supply. Ethiopia, which hopes the hydropower
dam will boost its economy through power exports, has said there will be
no major impact.
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