Badr Abdel Aaty, a spokesman for the Foreign Ministry, said on Tuesday that two US Congressional delegations are currently visiting Egypt and have met with a number of senior Egyptian officials for consultations on bilateral relations and a number of regional and international affairs.
The first delegation is headed by Mike Rogers, chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, and includes 3 other congressmen. The second delegation includes Senator Tim Kaine, head of the Sub-committee on the Near East, South and Central Asian Affairs.
Observers say that Egypt has been an ally of Washington in the Middle East for decades, but recently began to strengthen ties with Russia in response to the US government's partial suspension of aid to Egypt. The US government suspended parts of its aid to Egypt after the overthrow of Mohamed Morsy, Egypt's first democratically elected president. US officials decided to stand firm against the Egyptian military after it used force to disperse mostly peaceful protesters at the Rabaa al-Adaweya and Nahda square sit-ins, killing almost 600 people in the process.
Defense Minister Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Foreign Minister Nabil Fahmy paid a visit to Russia recently for anticipated cooperation.
Edited translation from MENA and Al-Masry Al-Youm
