The US Treasury Department said in a statement that Secretary Janet Yellen expressed US support for efforts to strengthen the Egyptian economy and its reforms during a meeting with senior Egyptian financial officials in Washington on Tuesday.
The ministry said in a statement that Secretary Janet Yellen expressed US support for efforts to strengthen the Egyptian economy and its reforms during a meeting with senior Egyptian financial officials in Washington.
Following the meeting, Yellen said in a post on her account on the X platform: “We discussed the situation in the Middle East and the global economy. During our meeting, I stressed our strong support for Egypt’s reform program to strengthen its economy and support comprehensive and sustainable growth.”
Yellen’s meeting with Finance Minister Mohamed Maait, Central Bank Governor Hassan Abdullah, and International Cooperation Minister Rania Al-Mashat comes as Egypt is in discussions with the International Monetary Fund about increasing its $3 billion loan amid the economic challenges resulting from the conflict in Gaza.
The meeting also comes at a time when US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken is visiting the Middle East and working to avoid the expansion of the war between Israel and Gaza into a regional conflict.
Egypt, already struggling with high levels of foreign debt, has been hit hard by the war in the neighboring Gaza Strip, which threatens to disrupt tourism bookings and natural gas imports, in addition to recent attacks on ships in the Red Sea.
A Treasury Department spokesman said, “Secretary Yellen looks forward to hearing their plans to address the economic challenges in Egypt and to expressing American support for the Egyptian reform program to revitalize the economy and support sustainable and comprehensive growth.”
The Egyptian loan program worth three billion dollars faltered. The Fund also postponed the disbursement of about $700 million expected in 2023, but it said in December that it was in talks to expand the $3 billion program given the economic risks resulting from the Israel-Gaza war.
The Fund’s spokesman did not provide any additional details about the meeting.
2024-01-10 00:16:00
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