WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The House of Representatives on Tuesday advanced legislation aimed at pressuring Egypt to improve its human rights record by withholding some military aid until progress is made.
The House Appropriations Committee approved a wide-ranging foreign aid bill for next year that would hold back $200 million in military funds for Egypt until the close U.S. ally takes steps to curb police abuses, reform its judicial system and stop weapons smuggling from Egypt to Gaza.
This appears for now to be essentially a threat, albeit a highly symbolic one:
“The $200 million cut is substantial,” said Rep. James Moran (news, bio, voting record), a Virginia Democrat on the House panel. “Our ally is not upholding the principles that define us.”
Rep. Nita Lowey (news, bio, voting record), a New York Democrat who will steer the foreign aid bill through the House, said she hoped Egypt would quickly get the message from Congress and make progress on human rights matters before lawmakers finish work on the legislation later this year.
I was in Washington a few weeks ago and interviewed several Egypt-watchers there — including administration officials — who did not think this would happen, and hence I tend to see this as a threat that is unlikely to actually be implemented. I have also received the same impression from Congressional staffers and other senior American officials I’ve recently spoken to on the subject. More on this in the morning…
It’s probably pertinant to point out that the Washington Post had very visible coverage of electoral fraud in Giza in both the main rag and the “express” version that litters the Metro. Both editions include a great photo, too: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/11/AR2007061102346.html?nav=rss_print/asection.
BBC, on the other hand, runs only a piece about AUC’s dress code.
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Good news. Who has been pushing for this, btw, other than Lowey and Moran? There was some movement in Congress last year around this time, hope this initiative goes further.
[…] US is threatening to cut military aid to Egypt by $200m, but blogger Issandr El Amrani thinks it is unlikely. “I was in Washington a few weeks ago and interviewed several Egypt-watchers there — […]
Taken Question
Office of the Spokesman
Washington, DC
June 13, 2007
Question Taken at June 13, 2007 Daily Press Briefing
Egypt: FY 2008 Foreign Assistance Request for Egypt
Question: How much foreign aid was requested for Egypt, and how much did the House Appropriations Committee ask to cut?
Answer: $1.726 billion in foreign aid to Egypt was requested for FY 2008, including $415 million in Economic Support Funds and $1.3 billion in Foreign Military Financing. The House Appropriations Committee did not ask to cut any of the funds requested for Egypt; however, the Committee has specified criteria for certification by the Secretary of State as a condition for release of $200 million of the FMF.
Happens every year around this time …