US cuts aid to Ethiopia over Renaissance Dam

United State’s Secretary, Mike Pompeo has approved a planto stop US foreign assistance to Ethiopia over the country’s dispute with Egypt and Sudan over the Renaissance Dam.

The United States official reported that the plan could affect up to $130 million in US foreign assistance to Ethiopia.

The official noted that this could also affect “security assistance, counterterrorism and military education and training, anti-human trafficking programmes and broader development assistance funding.”

However, the cuts will not impact US funding for emergency humanitarian relief, food assistance, or healthcare programs aimed at addressing COVID-19 and HIV/AIDS.

According to Foreign Policy, US President Donald Trump is fond of Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi, explaining claims by Ethiopian officials that the US administration is taking the side of Egypt in the talks on the dam.

One US official said, “There’s still progress being made, we still see a viable path forward here. US role is to do everything it can to help facilitate an agreement between the three countries that balance their interests.”