“He was talking about Egypt and Ethiopia,” a senior Ethio­pian government official told the Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media on the matter. “President Trump really believes he avoided a war as such … but that was not the case.”

Ministers from Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan, which controls a stretch of the Nile between its two sparring neighbors, will meet in Washington next week to discuss the ongoing impasse in talks concerning the dam.

Ethiopia’s peace deal with Eritrea led to a reopening of borders and diplomatic relations. Eritrea was part of Ethi­o­pia until it seceded in 1993 and then fought a bloody war to retain its independence that began in 1998. The war resulted in at least 80,000 deaths. Eritrea still has mandatory conscription, which tens of thousands have sought to avoid by migrating to Europe and countries on the nearby Arabian peninsula.

“He was talking about Egypt and Ethiopia,” a senior Ethio­pian government official told the Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media on the matter. “President Trump really believes he avoided a war as such … but that was not the case.”

Ministers from Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan, which controls a stretch of the Nile between its two sparring neighbors, will meet in Washington next week to discuss the ongoing impasse in talks concerning the dam.

Ethiopia’s peace deal with Eritrea led to a reopening of borders and diplomatic relations. Eritrea was part of Ethi­o­pia until it seceded in 1993 and then fought a bloody war to retain its independence that began in 1998. The war resulted in at least 80,000 deaths. Eritrea still has mandatory conscription, which tens of thousands have sought to avoid by migrating to Europe and countries on the nearby Arabian peninsula.