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Facing pressure on human rights, Biden administration attaches new conditions to Egypt security aid
Source: Washington Post
Facing pressure on human rights, Biden administration attaches new conditions to Egypt security aid
By John Hudson and Missy Ryan
September 13, 2021 at 10:34 p.m. EDT
The Biden administration will impose new conditions on security aid to Egypt, officials said Monday, a decision that sends an unusual rebuke to a key Middle Eastern ally over alleged government abuses but stops short of a larger penalty sought by human rights groups.
The determination, which affects a share of the $1.3 billion in security assistance the United States provides Egypt each year, offers an indication of how the Biden administration will balance human rights and national security as it seeks to repair damage to America’s reputation and refocus on domestic challenges, including political divisions and the coronavirus pandemic.
After lengthy deliberations, officials have decided to provide $170 million to Egypt for counterterrorism, border security and nonproliferation, said State Department and congressional aides familiar with the matter. The administration will provide an additional $130 million on the condition that Egypt ends protracted prosecutions against rights and civil society organizations known as Case 173, and drops charges against or releases 16 individuals the United States has identified and raised with Cairo since June, the officials said.
“If they complete the human rights criteria that we laid out for the Egyptians, they also get the $130 million,” said one U.S. official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe a decision that had not been announced publicly.
Past administrations have usually cited national security concerns to exercise a waiver allowing them to disburse $300 million of the aid package that is otherwise contingent on Egypt meeting certain human rights standards. A U.S. official said the Biden administration’s decision to place conditions on some of the aid conveys that this is not business as usual.
-snip-
By John Hudson and Missy Ryan
September 13, 2021 at 10:34 p.m. EDT
The Biden administration will impose new conditions on security aid to Egypt, officials said Monday, a decision that sends an unusual rebuke to a key Middle Eastern ally over alleged government abuses but stops short of a larger penalty sought by human rights groups.
The determination, which affects a share of the $1.3 billion in security assistance the United States provides Egypt each year, offers an indication of how the Biden administration will balance human rights and national security as it seeks to repair damage to America’s reputation and refocus on domestic challenges, including political divisions and the coronavirus pandemic.
After lengthy deliberations, officials have decided to provide $170 million to Egypt for counterterrorism, border security and nonproliferation, said State Department and congressional aides familiar with the matter. The administration will provide an additional $130 million on the condition that Egypt ends protracted prosecutions against rights and civil society organizations known as Case 173, and drops charges against or releases 16 individuals the United States has identified and raised with Cairo since June, the officials said.
“If they complete the human rights criteria that we laid out for the Egyptians, they also get the $130 million,” said one U.S. official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe a decision that had not been announced publicly.
Past administrations have usually cited national security concerns to exercise a waiver allowing them to disburse $300 million of the aid package that is otherwise contingent on Egypt meeting certain human rights standards. A U.S. official said the Biden administration’s decision to place conditions on some of the aid conveys that this is not business as usual.
-snip-
Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/facing-pressure-on-human-rights-biden-administration-attaches-new-conditions-on-egypt-security-aid/2021/09/13/bdbae57c-1496-11ec-ae9a-9c36751cf799_story.html