Climate change to blame for Mekong drought

Beijing - A senior Chinese official refuted accusations that upstream hydropower dams caused the current drought in Lower Mekong basin nations at the Mekong River Commission (MRC) International Conference in Thailand on Friday.

"The extremely dry weather in the lower Mekong river basin is the root cause of the reduced run-off water and declining water levels in the Mekong," said Chen Mingzhong, the deputy director-general of the Department of International Cooperation, Science and Technology with China's Ministry of Water Resources.

As a dialogue partner of the Mekong River Commission, China sent a delegation led by Vice-Foreign Minister Song Tao to the two-day conference held at Thailand's seaside resort town of Hua Hin.