Ashraf Abo Araf
The Arab Republic of Egypt regrets the decision of the United States of America to reduce some of the funds allocated under the US assistance program to Egypt, whether by directly reducing some components of the Economic Support Fund, or withholding the disbursement of some components of the Military Assistance Program.
Egypt considers this step as a misjudgment of the nature of the strategic relations that binds the two countries over decades, and reflects the lack of understanding of the importance of supporting the stability and success of Egypt. It also underestimates the size and nature of the economic and security challenges facing the Egyptian people, and implies a mixing of cards that may have negative repercussions on achieving Egyptian-American common interests.
While the Arab Republic of Egypt appreciates the importance of the step taken by ratifying the general framework of the 2017 Assistance program, Egypt looks forward to the Administration’s dealing with the program in a manner that recognizes and respects the vital importance of the Assistance Program to both countries’ common interests, and maintains the strong relationship between the two nations, which has always been founded on the established principles of international relations and mutual respect.
