Eurasia Press & News
Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel said on Wednesday that he opposes cutting off US military aid to Egypt but vowed Washington would keep pressing for “reconciliation” in the country.
The United States earlier this month condemned Egyptian security forces for firing on protesters backing ousted president Mohammed Morsi, in a crackdown that left nearly 1 000 people dead.
“The interim government has to get back on the path to reconciliation, stop the violence, put Egypt back on the path of economic, democratic reform,” Hagel said on Wednesday.
“Now do you do that best by cutting off all aid?
“Maybe eventually that happens, but I don’t think you can take that approach initially, you have to respond and we’ve made it clear what we’d like to see happen,” said Hagel, in Brunei for a meeting of regional defence ministers.
Hagel did not rule out eventually shutting off the flow of $1.3bn in annual military aid to Cairo, but he stressed the importance of maintaining the decades-long alliance with Egypt, calling it a source of stability that had reinforced US interests.
