Speaking to El Hikya program on MBC channel late on Saturday, Abdel Ati said the State will not allow a water crisis in Egypt because it will have grave consequences not only on Egypt but on the entire region.

Taking the decision to go to war is a difficult one and Egypt should not be forced to take such a decision, he added.

Ethiopia seeks to create problems all time and is wasting time to reach an agreement, he said, adding that this problem could be settled in two hours if Ethiopia showed readiness.

What we are concerned about is filling the dam at the time of drought, he said, adding that Egypt is capable of containing any problem because we have been working on this issue for five years now and we took measures to reduce irrigation water consumption, including limiting cultivation of rice, sugar cane and banana.

He said a drought is likely this year, he said, hoping that a flood would occur like last year.