The U.S. military has transferred the first of four U.S.-built fast patrol boats to Egypt, but said the move did not signal a change in Washington’s decision to withhold most military aid due to concerns about democracy and human rights.
“This is not a shift in our posture with regard to foreign military assistance,” said Pentagon spokesman Navy Commander Bill Speaks, adding that Washington continued to review the overall level of aid to Egypt.
“The big picture on foreign military assistance to Egypt is something that we’re constantly reviewing in terms of their progress toward getting back on the path to democratic governance,”
He said the Obama administration had made clear when it announced plans last month to withhold $260 million in cash and various military equipment sales from Egypt that it would continue to support military support for counterterrorism, counter-proliferation and security in Sinai Peninsula, which borders U.S. ally Israel.
“We have continued military assistance in areas in which we share vital national security interests,” Speaks told Reuters. He declined to say how Egypt would use the new warships.
Speaks said the second of the four fast patrol boats would be transferred to Egypt before the end of the year, with the remaining two ships to follow early next year.
Washington last month suspended some military shipments to Egypt, but U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and other U.S. officials have made some positive statements in recent weeks about Egypt’s efforts to restore democracy.
Last week, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel spoke with Egyptian army chief General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and welcomed the end of emergency law and curfew in Egypt, according to a readout of their phone call by a Pentagon spokesman.
Sisi led the overthrow of Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi, the leader of the country’s Muslim Brotherhood, in July following mass protests against Sisi’s rule.
Speaks said the U.S. government was paying U.S. weapons makers some storage fees for equipment built for but not yet shipped to Egypt. He declined to give any details on the fees.
Among items being withheld from shipment to Egypt are F-16 fighter jets by Lockheed Martin Corp, Apache helicopters built by Boeing Co and tank upgrade kits built by General Dynamics Corp.
The fast missile craft for Egypt are being built by VT Halter Marine, a unit of ST Engineering, with help from Lockheed.
Source: Reuters
