Renaissance Dam: US suspends part of Ethiopia's aid

The Great Renaissance Dam on the Nile in Ethiopia, September 26, 2019. REUTERS / Tiksa Negeri

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The United States announced Wednesday, September 2 the suspension of part of its aid to Ethiopia, which is however a usual strategic ally of Washington.

As an explanation for this decision, the State Department cites the "lack of progress" in the Renaissance Dam negotiations.

The move comes after Ethiopia slammed the door to US mediation last February, and tension with Sudan and Egypt escalated in early summer, as the start of the barrage.

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The decision comes from President Donald Trump himself.

According to the State Department quoted by the

, this is a " 

 " intended to " 

”.

A surprise announcement in the form of firm support for Egypt in

.

The exact amount of aid concerned is not yet known.

Last week, the very serious

claimed that American diplomacy was working on the hypothesis of a cut of 130 million dollars.

The spokesperson quoted by

assures that humanitarian and medical aid is not affected.

► To read also: Renaissance Dam: what does Ethiopia want?

Ethiopia has yet to officially respond.

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's office simply retweeted the World Bank, which reaffirms its support for 

Ethiopia's “

” to the tune of $ 2.9 billion.

For his part, analyst William Davison, of the International Crisis Group, assured the Bloomberg channel that this decision would not change anything, but that on the contrary it would strengthen Ethiopia's position in the negotiations.

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• Ethiopia

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Renaissance Dam: what does Ethiopia want?