by Naama Ben-Yaakov
Cairo announced Wednesday that it would not be swayed by American threats to cut off the aid Egypt receives from the United States when investigating foreign-funded organizations promoting Western interests, a case that has prompted Washington to warn that US military support worth an annual $1.3 billion may be in jeopardy.
The US wants Egypt to drop travel bans on at least 19 American citizens involved in the case but Egypt’s government says it cannot intervene in a judicial probe of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) over whether they violated laws such as receiving foreign cash without official approval.
A total of 43 foreign and local activists, accused of promoting the local interests of Western governments, are currently banned from leaving Egypt and their case has been referred to a criminal court.
“Egypt will apply the law… in the case of NGOs and will not back down because of aid or other reasons,” army-appointed Prime Minister Kamal al-Ganzouri told a news conference.
The case has put a deep strain on Cairo’s relationship with Washington, which treated Egypt as a regional client state under ousted President Hosni Mubarak.
US President Barack Obama spoke with the head of Egypt’s ruling military council, Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, in late January and stressed the importance of the Western-backed organizations, as well as Egypt’s request for $3.2 billion in support from the International Monetary Fund.
In a weekend call to Tantawi, US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta urged the Egyptians to lift the travel ban on American citizens wishing to leave the country, and expressed concern over restrictions placed on NGOs, the Pentagon said.
The Obama administration is finalizing its budget for the 2013 fiscal year, which will be presented on February 13 and is expected to include continued assistance for Egypt’s military, albeit subject to new conditions imposed by Washington.
Both US Congress and the Obama White House have warned that Egypt’s crackdown on Western agents could threaten American foreign aid to the country.
