CAIRO, July 20 (Reuters) - Egypt said on Saturday it was very concerned that the Ethiopian government had not responded to an Egyptian invitation to discuss a dispute over a giant dam that Ethiopia plans to build on the Nile.
"Egypt is deeply worried that Ethiopia has not yet reacted to the invitation Egypt's minister of water and irrigation made to conduct a meeting in Cairo on the consequences of the dam," a statement issued by the foreign ministry said. Egypt fears the dam will reduce water flows vital for its 84 million people.
Egypt's recently ousted President Mohamed Mursi said last month that "all options" were open in dealing with Ethiopia over the project, prompting Ethiopia to say it was ready to defend its $4.7 billion dam, which lies near its border with Sudan. (Reporting by Ayman Samir, Writing by Yasmine Saleh; editing by Crispian Balmer)
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