Resumption of aid to Egypt part of US 2015 spending bill
Iran Press TV
Mon Dec 15, 2014 2:39PM GMT
The United States military spending bill for 2015 has resumed the partially frozen aid to Egypt, signaling a thaw in relations with the Arab country.
The US Congress approved a massive military spending bill on Friday, worth more than half a trillion dollars, the largest portion of next year's $1.1 trillion budget.
The bill allocated $1.3 billion military and economic aid to Egypt on condition that Egypt meets Washington's "democratic requirements," according to media reports. The spending bill, however, reduces economic assistance to Egypt to $150 million.
According to the bill, to receive the first $725 million of the aid, Egypt must hold free and fair elections, respect civil society organizations and freedom of expression, and release US political prisoners.
The rest of the aid will be delivered later if Egypt adheres to US conditions, which will be at Secretary of State John Kerry's discretion.
If Kerry decides it is in the interest of the US to continue releasing the rest of the aid, he will inform Congress through a private and "classified form."
The changes in US foreign policy towards Egypt come after strong lobbying from the Arab country and its allies including Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Jordan, as well as pro-Israel lobby AIPAC, a White House aide has disclosed.
"There is an incentive towards bolstering the Egyptian government and seeing them as an ally" against the ISIL terrorist group, Andrew Hammond, a Middle East analyst at the European Council on Foreign Relations told The National.
With the Republican takeover of Congress, Democratic senators against US aid to Egypt will leave related Senate committees and the aid flow will likely continue uninterrupted.
Last year, after the democratically elected President Mohammed Morsi was ousted, the US halted a transfer of F-16 fighter jets, M1A1 tank kits, Harpoon missiles and Apache helicopters.
The suspension of the US aid angered Egyptians and led to damaged US-Egyptian relations.
Egyptian President Abdul-Fattah al-Sisi negotiated intensely with Kerry over the resumption of the military assistance.
In June, Kerry certified that Egypt was meeting its obligations as a strategic partner, and released $575 million in military aid.
AN/HRJ
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