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A2 UP FRONT
Thursday 24 augusT 2017
Egypt’s leader, US envoy meet after cut in American aid

By MENNA ZAKI toppled longtime autocrat
Associated Press Hosni Mubarak, and pro-
CAIRO (AP) — Egypt’s government media often
president and foreign min- present them as part of a
ister met with White House conspiracy to undermine
adviser Jared Kushner on the state. The authorities
Wednesday, just hours after have arrested thousands of
the Trump administration people since el-Sissi led the
cut or delayed hundreds 2013 military overthrow of
of millions of dollars in aid President Mohammed Mor-
to Cairo over human rights si, an Islamist who won the
concerns. country’s first freely contest-
Kushner, who is also Presi- ed election.
dent Donald Trump’s son- Most of those in deten-
in-law, was in Cairo as part tion are Islamist supporters
of a Middle East tour aimed of Morsi, but a number of
at exploring ways to revive prominent liberal and secu-
Israeli-Palestinian peace lar activists have also been
talks, which last collapsed jailed. Trump made no
in 2014. A modified version public mention of human
of Foreign Minister Sameh rights when he warmly wel-
Shoukry’s schedule had comed el-Sissi to the White
earlier showed the meet- House in April, an omission
ing with Kushner cancelled, Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, right, poses for a photo with White House adviser Jared that many took as a sign
which was widely seen as Kushner, in Cairo, Egypt, Wednesday, Aug. 23, 2017. El-Sissi and Egypt’s foreign minister have met that the issue was not a pri-
a snub in protest at the aid with Kushner just hours after the Trump administration cut or delayed hundreds of millions of dollars ority for the administration.
cuts. But Shoukry later sat in in aid to Cairo over human rights concerns. Kushner, who is also President Donald Trump’s son-in- But two months later, two
on Kushner’s meeting with law, was in Cairo as part of a Middle East tour aimed at exploring ways to revive Israeli-Palestinian senators from Trump’s Re-
President Abdel-Fattah el- peace talks, which last collapsed in 2014. publican Party slammed as
Sissi and met with the Amer- (MENA via AP) “draconian” a new Egyp-
ican delegation separately non-governmental groups. the lack of careful under- ceiving about $1.5 billion tian law that effectively
at the Foreign Ministry. The move came as a sur- standing of the importance annually. The $1.3 billion in bans the work of non-gov-
Kushner’s delegation in- prise to many, given the of supporting the stabil- military aid and $250 million ernmental organizations
cludes Jason Greenblatt, close ties forged since ity and success of Egypt as in economic aid is linked to and urged its repeal.
the U.S. envoy for interna- Trump took office. The U.S. well as the size and nature Egypt’s 1979 peace treaty Egypt has defended the
tional negotiations, and president has repeatedly of the security and eco- with Israel, and underpins law, which provoked an
Dina Powell, the deputy hailed el-Sissi as a key ally in nomic challenges faced by a U.S.-Egyptian security re- international backlash,
national security adviser. the fight against terrorism. the Egyptian people.” The lationship that is now mostly saying it was drafted and
The Trump administration In a statement, the Egyp- decision, it warned, may aimed at fighting terrorism. approved according to its
on Tuesday cut nearly $100 tian Foreign Ministry said have “negative conse- In recent years, Egypt has constitution.
million in military and eco- Cairo regretted the U.S. quences for the realization clamped down on civil so- Egypt is grappling with an
nomic aid to Egypt and decision, calling it a “mis- of common U.S.-Egyptian ciety, particularly human insurgency by Islamic mili-
delayed almost $200 million judgment of the nature of interests.” It did not elabo- rights groups and other or- tants in the northern part of
more in military financing, the strategic relations that rate. ganizations that receive the Sinai Peninsula, an ail-
citing Egypt’s poor human have bound the two coun- Egypt is among the top re- foreign funding. Such ing economy and a rapidly
rights record and its crack- tries for decades.” cipients of U.S. military and groups played a central growing population of 93
down on civic and other It said the move “reflects economic assistance, re- role in the 2011 uprising that million. q

Russian official says US and Russia aren’t in new Cold War

By VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV air. lows over the Ukrainian zero-sum game. indefinitely suspend issu-
Associated Press Speaking to Japanese and crisis, the war in Syria and Ryabkov emphasized that ing visas at its consulates
MOSCOW (AP) — Rus- Chinese media in remarks the accusations of Russian Russia refrained from any in St. Petersburg, Yekater-
sia and the United States released by his ministry, Ry- meddling in last year’s U.S. steps that “if asymmetrical, inburg and Vladivostok in
aren’t in a new Cold War abkov said: “I don’t think presidential vote. not tit-for-tat, could harm response to the Russian de-
despite spiraling tensions, that such confrontation is Ryabkov said that about regional and global stabil- cision to cap embassy staff.
a senior Russian diplomat possible.” He added that 400 Russian entities and ity.” “By depriving Russian citi-
said in remarks released decades of experience some 200 Russian citizens “Russia is fully aware of its zens of the possibility to
Wednesday. have taught Moscow and have been targeted by measure of responsibility receive visas freely and
Deputy Foreign Minister Ser- Washington caution. the U.S. sanctions. He re- in this field,” he said, not- easily, the United States is
gei Ryabkov denounced “I don’t think that we are affirmed Moscow’s denial ing that Russia and the U.S. turning itself into its own op-
U.S. sanctions against Rus- in a state of a new Cold of interference in the U.S. have reached a significant posite,” he said.
sia, but emphasized that War because there are no election, dismissing the ac- progress in their efforts to “Some would think it’s time
the current tension “isn’t grounds for a Cold War cusations as “collective settle the Syrian crisis. to open a bottle of cham-
equivalent to confronta- in the old meaning of the madness.” The Kremlin has responded pagne because the U.S. is
tion that may spill into open word, meaning a confron- He argued that Russia’s re- to sanctions approved by destroying itself, while oth-
conflict.” He added, how- tation between systems sponse to the U.S. sanctions the U.S. Congress by order- ers would see it as a sad
ever, that Russia and the and ideologies, ideological has been “quite restrained ing sharp cuts of U.S. diplo- moment because it would
U.S. need to refresh their rivalry,” Ryabkov said. and modest,” adding that matic personnel in Russia. be more difficult to get ac-
agreements on preventing Russia-U.S. relations have Moscow doesn’t view rela- Ryabkov scathingly criti- cess to the American val-
incidents at sea and in the plunged to post-Cold War tions with Washington as a cized the U.S. decision to ues and benefits.”q