Former House Foreign Affairs Committee chairwoman Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) has been named to lead the new Middle East and North Africa subcommittee, and will be replaced as Foreign Affairs chairperson by Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA). Ros-Lehtinen, the most senior Republican woman in the House, will set the agenda for the revamped subcommittee. In an open letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton last October, Ros-Lehtinen raised concerns about U.S. aid to the Egyptian Government, stressing that “As Egypt’s Islamist leadership increasingly takes control of the country, place Muslim Brotherhood members as provincial governors and installing radical Islamists…we are concerned for the future of both Egyptian minorities and secular, pro-democracy activists”. In a December statement, she expressed concern that “Egypt has moved from one dictatorship to another while leaving democracy in the dust.” [ed note;wich is funny because she and her own party supported the previous puppet dictatorship of mubarak...see...(2007) U.S. Policy in the Middle East - House Committee on Foreign Affairs We have also recently reaffirmed our security partnerships with Israel and Egypt.In August, Under Secretary Burns signed a ten-year Foreign Military Financing memorandum of understanding with Israel for $30 billion, to continue to ensure Israel’s qualitative military edge and to give the Government of Israel the confidence it needs to pursue peace and seek better relations with others in the region.We have also agreed with the Government of Egypt on a new $13 billion militaryassistance plan. Egypt is a longtime partner and plays a pivotal role in bringing continued stability to the region. Egypt’s continued tactical and strategic cooperation is vital to success in the war against extremist terrorism in the region. In that regard, I would like to reiterate the message which Secretary Gates and I sent to the Hill several weeks ago, urging the Congress to provide full FMF funding of $1.3 billion for Egypt in Fiscal Year 2008, without conditionality
No comments:
Post a Comment