The Obama administration has been quietly preparing to scale back financial aid to Egypt, due to the ongoing violence and ouster of President Mohammed Morsi — which U.S. officials still refuse to label a coup — and will announce the amount of the cut “in the coming days,” an unnamed source told CNN.
Mr. Morsi was thrown from office in July by the military. Secretary of State John Kerry said the White House had withheld judgment on calling the ouster a coup. Doing so would mean the administration would have to end aid to Egypt.
But now, CNN reported, the White House is prepared to trim its aid package to the violence-torn nation — though it’s not clear if that cutback will come with an admission of coup.
A senior U.S. official said the move to halt funding is due to an “accumulation of events,” including the failure of government to stop the violence, CNN reported.
Funds to uphold Egypt’s obligations in its peace deal with Israel would likely continue, the unnamed source said in CNN. And so would money for counterterrorism operations and security staff in Sinai, as well as nonmilitary funding that promotes democracy, a senior U.S. official said.
So what funding would stop?
That’s not yet clear, CNN said. The White House’s announcement would clarify that point. More than $1 billion of U.S. money flows into Egypt each year.
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
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