Trump praises Egypt's Sisi despite concerns about human rights, Russian arms
WASHINGTON - U.S. President Donald Trump praised his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah al-Sisi as a "great president" on Tuesday despite U.S. lawmakers' concerns about his record on human rights, efforts to keep him in office until 2034 and planned Russian arms purchases.
Egypt's parliament has proposed constitutional reforms aimed at allowing Sisi to remain in power until 2034, a move criticized by senior U.S. lawmakers and advocacy groups who are also disturbed by Egypt's repression of human rights.
Asked if he backed the efforts to allow Sisi to potentially stay in power for another 15 years, Trump told reporters: "I think he's doing a great job. I don’t know about the effort, I can just tell you he is doing a great job ... great president."
Sisi is a former general who came to power after the military overthrew Islamist President Mohammed Mursi in 2013 following mass protests against his rule. Sisi was elected president the following year.
