European Union Ambassador Marc Franco has expressed concern over the Egyptian economy, which he said is in an “alarming” state, and praised the former regime for liberalizing the economy and encouraging investment.
“Democracy will provide [even] more job opportunities,” he said.
At an iftar with journalists, Franco declined to comment on Mubarak’s trial, and hoped the diplomatic crisis with Israel would be resolved in an amicable manner.
He also said the EU deals with NGOs that are officially recognized by the government. “Some NGOs faced difficulties under the Mubarak regime,” he said.
He praised the Egyptian revolution and called on political movements to turn into parties with representation in parliament in order to attain true democracy.
“The Egyptian people will have free elections for the first time in 60 years,” he said, adding that the EU was willing to help supervise the elections but the government had opted for local judicial supervision.
Translated from the Arabic Edition
