Nairobi, April 14 -- Egypt says Ethiopia is deliberately delaying talks on Nile dispute so as to "buy time" in order to continue filling its giant dam being built on River Nile.

"It is regrettable that Ethiopian officials continue to express their unwillingness to resume negotiations under the auspices of the African Union (AU) in a new attempt to buy time and continue filling the dam without an agreement," Egypt's Deputy Foreign Minister for African Affairs Hamdy Loza said on Wednesday.

Cairo's latest accusation came hours after Addis Ababa announced that it will fill the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) without seeking anyone's permission.

"Ethiopia has no obligation to request permission from anyone to fill the dam," Ethiopia'...