Madeleine K. Albright, a former secretary of state and U.N. ambassador, on Sunday disagreed with the so-called “chaos scenario” in which the street-level, political revolution in Egypt would only get worse if President Hosni Mubarak resigns.
“There are a variety of other structures in place,” Mrs. Albright, a Clinton administration appointee, said on CNN’s “State of the Union.”
She said longtime leaders such as Mr. Mubarak have a hard time realizing “your time is up.”
Egyptian residents have held sometimes peaceful and sometimes violent protests in the street of Cario for 13 days, calling for a more democratic government and better economic opportunities.
Protesters, who want Mr. Mubarak to resign immediately, have not responded to Mr. Mubarak’s considerations, which have included promising not to run for re-election this fall and appointing a vice president for the first time since he took office in 1981.
Mrs. Albright said the “chaos scenario” is based on the assumption that the more radical Muslim Brotherhood will take power. She said that was “not true” and that Egypt had other viable political groups between Mr. Mubarak’s government and the Muslim Brotherhood, which agreed Sunday to take part in talks about a government transition.
• Joseph Weber can be reached at jweber@washingtontimes.com.old.
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