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Addis Ababa March 01/2013 The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the accusation by the Saudi Arabian Deputy Defense Minister, Khalid Bin Sultan against Ethiopia of posing threats to Sudan and Egypt is shocking and unacceptable.
In an interview with the Ethiopian Radio and Television Agency on Thursday, Ministry's Spokesperson, Ambassador Dina Mufti said the accusation was unexpected and shocking as Saudi is one of the strategic partners of Ethiopia in the region.
The Spokesperson said higher level officials of the Ministry were holding a meeting on the matter with Saudi Ambassador here later Thursday .
During the meeting, the Saudi Ambassador affirmed that the Minister's speech is not his stand and would not be his government's as well, he said, adding, though the Ethiopian government is awaiting clarifications from Riyadh on the matter.
The Sudan Tribune last Tuesday reported that the Deputy Minister at the meeting of the Arab Water Council held in Cairo accused Ethiopia saying that the Nation is posing a threat to the Nile water rights of Egypt and Sudan.
He said "The Renaissance Dam has its capacity of flood waters reaching more than 70 billion cubic meters of water and is located at an altitude of 700 meters and if it collapsed then Khartoum will drown completely and the impact will even reach the Aswan Dam"
He further said "Egypt is the most affected party from the Ethiopian Renaissance dam because they have no alternative water source compared to other Nile Basin countries and the establishment of the dam 12 kilometers from the Sudanese border is for political plotting rather than for economic gain and constitutes a threat to Egyptian and Sudanese national security"
The Minister went further saying that Ethiopia is keen on harming Arab nations.
"There are fingers messing with water resources of Sudan and Egypt which are rooted in the mind and body of Ethiopia. They do not forsake an opportunity to harm Arabs without taking advantage of it" Prince Khalid said, according to Sudan Tribune.
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