10/1/2023-|Last update: 10/1/202302:23 AM (Mecca time)
Chairman of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Senator Ben Cardin, said that he will withhold military aid and arms sales from Egypt if Cairo does not take “tangible, meaningful, and sustainable steps” to improve human rights in the country.
This came in a statement by the Democratic Senator, on Saturday, in which he also stressed that “it is necessary to continue holding the Egyptian government and all governments accountable for their violations of human rights,” as he put it.
Cardin took over the chairmanship of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee a few days ago, replacing Senator Bob Menendez, against whom an indictment document was issued on September 22 of last year on charges that he received bribes in exchange for using his influence to provide services to the Egyptian government.
Cardin’s statement comes a day after Gregory Meeks, the top Democrat on the US House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee, called on the State Department to suspend part of US military aid to Egypt conditional on human rights standards.
Meeks said – in a statement published on the X platform – that Congress needs further clarification from the State Department regarding how to address concerns related to the treatment of political detainees and journalists in Egypt, as well as the rule of law.
The Democratic representative added that he contacted US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken to withhold $230 million in military aid conditional on preserving human rights, but only $85 million was withheld, according to him.
Meeks pledged to continue working to ensure that human rights and national security are fundamental pillars of American foreign policy.
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2023-09-30 22:52:30
