Egypt: US aid cut may force Israel treaty review
Muslim Brotherhood says cutting US aid constitutes violation of peace deal, threatens to walk away from treaty
The Muslim Brotherhood has warned that Egypt may review its 1979 peace deal with Israel if the United States cuts aid to the country, a move that could undermine a cornerstone of Washington's Middle East policy.
Washington has said the aid is at risk due to an Egyptian probe into civil society groups which has resulted in charges against at least 43 activists, including 19 Americans who have been banned from leaving the country.
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Egypt has been one of the world's largest recipients of US aid since it signed the peace treaty with Israel, and the Brotherhood, which does not yet hold the reins of power, said any decision to cut that aid because of the investigation would raise serious questions.
"We (Egypt) are a party (to the treaty) and we will be harmed so it is our right to review the matter," Essam el-Erian, a senior Brotherhood leader, told Reuters in a telephone interview.
"The aid was one of the commitments of the parties that signed the peace agreement so if there is a breach from one side it gives the right of review to the parties," added Erian, the deputy leader of the Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), the biggest group in the newly elected parliament.
'Peace accord could stumble'
His remarks are likely to increase pressure on all sides to resolve one of the worst crises in US-Egyptian ties since the treaty was signed. In similar comments, FJP leader Mohamed Mursi said in a statement that US talk of halting the aid was "misplaced," adding that the peace agreement "could stumble."
He said: "We want the march of peace to continue in a way that serves the interest of the Egyptian people."
The Brotherhood has emerged as the single biggest political force in Egypt since Mubarak was ousted a year ago, winning more than 43 percent of the seats in recent parliamentary elections.
The rise of Islamist groups has caused deep concern in Israel. But despite their worries, Israeli officials do not believe the next president of Egypt will tear up the peace treaty.
A cleric seen as close to the Brotherhood said in an interview published on Wednesday that Egypt could not risk any military confrontation with Israel, adding that the country's main concern must be its economic problems.
"Egypt cannot enter a struggle in the military sense and leave the affairs of building on the internal front," Sheikh Yousef al-Qaradawi, an Egyptian who lives in Qatar, told Shorouk newspaper. "Now the citizen cannot remain without work."
In his annual budget message to Congress this week, US President Barack Obama asked for military aid to Egypt to be kept at $1.3 billion and sought $250 million in economic aid.
But General Martin Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said on Tuesday he had told Egypt's ruling generals that the NGO issue must be resolved satisfactorily to allow military cooperation with Cairo to continue.
A State Department spokeswoman also said that failure to resolve the impasse could endanger the funds.
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