Mr. President, please allow me, at the outset, to send you my sincere heartfelt greeting, and wish you well in this trying time. Mr. President the prevailing friendship existing between US and Ethiopia dates back to the beginning of the 20th century. In fact, the Ethiopian-American friendship started back in 1900 when the Government of 26th, President of the United States of the America, President William McKinley signed a Diplomatic Agreement with then Ruler of Ethiopia, Emperor Menelik the second.
The friendship between our two sovereign countries, continued, and the next President of the United States, Theodore Roosevelt, sent the first ever envoy headed by Robert Skinner to Ethiopia to establish a Diplomatic and trade mission in Ethiopia. It would be fitting at this juncture, to point out when USA established the first US. Mission in Addis Ababa, almost all of the rest of African States were under colonial rule. To cement the mutual relationship existing between the two countries, the Ethiopian leader, Emperor Menelik bestowed to the US. President, Lion cubs and Zebras as a present. I would like, Mr. President to bring to your attention that the direct descendants of these wild animals are today roaming in the precinct of Washington zoo in DC. Ethiopia always cherished the genuine friendship that existed between our two countries. Ethiopia stood firmly with United States in the Korean War of 1953. Ethiopia was one of the few United Nations Member State who contributed troops to fight North Korea, Ethiopian soldiers fought gallantly on the battleground until the end of the war. It has been said at the time that the American General who led the American force in the war was hugely admired the fighting spirit and the bravery of the Ethiopian troops who participated in the war. In addition, Ethiopia, stood by the side of the United Nation in resolving the civil war in the Congo, in early 1960s, by contributing Ethiopian forces along with other UN Member states to keep and enforce the peace in the Congo, Ethiopia always stood for and cherished the principle of peace and coexistence to resolve conflict peacefully.
Mr. President, by the same token, present day Ethiopia, believes in peaceful resolution of problems and misunderstandings. When Ethiopia began planning the construction of Grand Renaissance Dam, over the Blue Nile River, eight years ago, in 2012, Ethiopia informed the Egyptian side the detail of the Dam and its use to Ethiopian economy, however, the Egyptian government started becoming hostile ever since, the started of the construction of the Dam. Ethiopia took the initiative of undertaking a tripartite negotiation between Ethiopia, Egypt and the Sudan, in good faith. On the other hand, Egypt kept on scuttling the negotiation at every turn to the disappointment Ethiopia and Sudan. Egypt took the issue to the United Nation Security Council to secure a ruling against the interest of Ethiopia. Egypt also took the Dam case and appealed to the Arab league to interfere with the construction of the Dam. Taking the Dam issue to all sorts of International institutions has been Egypt’s modus operandi.
The Government of Egypt proposed to the tripartite negotiation the idea of involving the United States Government, and the World Bank. Ethiopia, agreed to and continued to participate in the negotiation, once again, in good faith, and was frustrated when it found out that the United State Government has prepared a draft agreement which favors’ the position of Egypt. Ethiopia found out that the US. Government is no longer an honest observer, and is trying to meddle in the internal affair of Ethiopia. Subsequently, Ethiopia informed all parties that the US. Position is unfair, biased and unacceptable, and temporality suspended its participation in the tripartite negotiation on the Ethiopian Dam. Therefore, Mr. President, this is to bring to your attention that there are about 4Million Ethiopian _ American citizens in the United States of America. We appeal to you to take an impartial stand on the Blue Nile Dam issue, and stop supporting the Egyptian position.
The world community, we feel, will never accept the unfair judgment of the United States on the Nile Dam.
Ethiopia, by historical accident, is the source of Blue Nile River.
Ethiopia has the right to use the Nile water without jeopardizing the interest of the downstream riparian states of Sudan and Egypt. The United States of America built, several decades ago, the Hoover Dam without any fuss from Mexico. Similarly, Ethiopia too, has the inalienable right to build the Grand Renaissance Dam over the Blue Nile River, and take its fair share of the water.
Time and again, Egypt has been disseminating unsubstantiated, false, and malicious information, and propaganda against the Ethiopian State.
Mr. President, to illustrate out this very point, we would like to bring to your attention to the hostile relationship, and Ethiopia had 150 years ago with Egypt.
In May 1876 the two nations went to war, when Egypt invaded the North part of Ethiopia with 20,000 strong army. The invading Egyptian troops were completely routed and defeated by the Ethiopian defending forces, and a lot of them were taken prisoners of war, including their war leader. After a year, the Egyptian leader, Kadive Ismail accepted the defeat of his troops and paid huge compensation for the loss of Ethiopian forces and properties, and his prisoner soldiers were released to go home.
Mr. President, Ethiopians, always looks towards the US a beacon of democracy, freedom and justice. United States of America. Upholds equal rights for all nations and human beings. This is I believe the great American ideals. This is I believe is one of the great American ideas.
Mr. President, once again, I humbly request you to look at the Dam issue with an open-mind without precondition and prejudice. With the advent of electric power generated by the Grand Dam, Ethiopia will be able to provide power to industries and homes, alleviating chronic poverty that has ravaged its population. Neighboring countries, such as Sudan, Djibouti, Eritrea, Somalia and Kenya, will able to obtain electric power exported from Ethiopia. The Dam, therefore, serves as a power house for continuous economic development of the East African region.
Mr. President, I’m, an Ethiopian-American and have been very active in the American political system since my arrival in this great nation back in 70s
I am currently in Ethiopia as an American investor.
I sincerely appreciate your understanding of my thoughts.
Assefa Adefris
651 Vanderbilt Av
Brooklyn, N.Y, 11238, N.Y
Contributed by Assefa Adefris