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alp227

(32,006 posts) Sat Mar 2, 2013, 01:46 PM Mar 2013

Kerry urges unpopular reforms in Egypt

Last edited Sat Mar 2, 2013, 04:31 PM - Edit history (1)

Source: washington post

Well-known political opposition figures stayed away from meetings with visiting Secretary of State John F. Kerry on Saturday, some for fear of appearing too close to the United States in the still-unsettled politics of Egypt two years after the fall of a U.S.-backed dictator.

Kerry was encouraging Egypt’s Islamist-led government to make politically difficult economic reforms that are crucial to securing international loans and outside investment. President Mohamed Morsi, whom Kerry will see Sunday, has been unable to marshal support for economic reforms. His opponents accuse him of reneging on pledges of political and religious openness.

Meanwhile, some $450 million in U.S. aid to Egypt has been frozen in Congress, and the International Monetary Fund has held off on loans and debt relief worth more than $4 billion. Egypt has been the most important Arab ally of the United States for decades, ties built largely on Egypt’s peace treaty with Israel.

Egypt's foreign currency reserves have fallen by roughly two-thirds since the 2011 revolution that overthrew longtime secular ruler Hosni Mubarak. Morsi’s government is trying to slow a run on the U.S. dollar. Unemployment is rampant, and a diesel-fuel crisis has led to waits of several hours at gas stations.

Read more: http://washingtonpost.com/world/kerry-urges-unpopular-reforms-in-egypt/2013/03/02/269d0c52-8353-11e2-a671-0307392de8de_singlePage.html

5 replies

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Kerry urges unpopular reforms in Egypt (Original Post) alp227 Mar 2013 OP

The US State Department: Waterboy for disaster capitalism. Comrade Grumpy Mar 2013 #1

Why is that bad? lunatica Mar 2013 #2

"$450 million in U.S. aid to Egypt has been frozen in Congress, and the International Monetary..." mpcamb Mar 2013 #3

I don't know about IMF, but the House (surprise!) blocked it last September karynnj Mar 2013 #4

Democratic reform initiatives arikara Mar 2013 #5

Comrade Grumpy

(13,184 posts)

1. The US State Department: Waterboy for disaster capitalism.

Reply to alp227 (Original post)

Sat Mar 2, 2013, 02:10 PM

Mar 2013

"Kerry was encouraging Egypt’s Islamist-led government to make politically difficult economic reforms that are crucial to securing international loans and outside investment."

lunatica

(53,410 posts)

2. Why is that bad?

Reply to Comrade Grumpy (Reply #1)

Sat Mar 2, 2013, 07:51 PM

Mar 2013

Disaster Capitalism is about creating an economic crisis in a country in order to take control of it. Something the US has done quite a few times. But in this case how is it part of what's happened. The US didn't create the problem, other than backing Mubarrak for decades. Right now the US has very little power in Egypt.

mpcamb

(2,868 posts)

3. "$450 million in U.S. aid to Egypt has been frozen in Congress, and the International Monetary..."

Reply to alp227 (Original post)

Sun Mar 3, 2013, 11:43 AM

Mar 2013

"... Fund has held off on loans and debt relief worth more than $4 billion."

Why?
WP article doesn't delve into this- or even touch on it.

Examination of this question is essential to this story... in fact, it's the real story.

karynnj

(59,498 posts)

4. I don't know about IMF, but the House (surprise!) blocked it last September

Reply to mpcamb (Reply #3)

Sun Mar 3, 2013, 01:05 PM

Mar 2013

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/28/us-house-kay-granger-blocks-egypt-aid_n_1924303.html

By December, there was a compromise to pass the funding - with caveats - http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/12/16/congress-spending-package-restricts-aid-to-egypt-pakistan/

The current status is that the humanitarian/developmental aid has been frozen for most of the post revolution time period.

Further complicating matters is Washington’s development aid package, which has been frozen for the better part of the post-
revolutionary period, largely because Cairo has resisted efforts by the United States to get involved in democratic reform initiatives. During his confirmation hearing, Kerry faced pointed questions about Morsi and military sales to Cairo. Cutting Egypt off would be harmful to U.S. interests, Kerry said.

“Egypt is a quarter of the Arab world,” he said. “It is critical to everything we aspire to see happen in the Middle East.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-lawmakers-question-military-aid-to-egypt-citing-concerns-about-israel/2013/03/02/2ddcfe9a-82b4-11e2-b99e-6baf4ebe42df_story_1.html

This article is mostly on the military aid package and it is very worth reading. Here is one comment -

"The administration has been keeping the military relationship on autopilot, and they’re conducting diplomacy with the Morsi government much like they did with Mubarak,” said Michelle Dunne, the director of the Atlantic Council’s Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East, who previously worked at the State Department and the National Security Council. “The policy is kind of a mess.”

(caveat - I have no idea who was President when she worked for the President and State Department.)

arikara

(5,562 posts)

5. Democratic reform initiatives

Reply to karynnj (Reply #4)

Sun Mar 3, 2013, 03:33 PM

Mar 2013

are I believe newspeak for privatization, giving away public resources, cutbacks to essential services and every other austerity measure designed to screw the public and feed the corporation.

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