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US 'will stand with Egypt's people' - Secretary Kerry | |
(about 1 hour later) | |
Washington will "stand with the Egyptian people in their fight for the future they want", US Secretary of State John Kerry has pledged. | |
He was speaking after talks in the capital Cairo with Egypt's newly elected President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi. | |
Mr Kerry also stressed the importance of the right to free speech and the rule of law. | |
The US has unfrozen $575m (£338m) in military aid to Egypt, state department officials said. | |
Mr Sisi, the 59-year-old ex-army chief, won elections in May, promising to tackle "terrorism" and bring security. | |
The retired field marshal overthrew President Mohammed Morsi last July amid mass protests against his rule. | The retired field marshal overthrew President Mohammed Morsi last July amid mass protests against his rule. |
He has since been pursuing a crackdown on Mr Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood, which urged a boycott of the 26-28 May elections. Liberal and secular activists also shunned the poll in protest at the curtailing of civil rights. | He has since been pursuing a crackdown on Mr Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood, which urged a boycott of the 26-28 May elections. Liberal and secular activists also shunned the poll in protest at the curtailing of civil rights. |
Advice ignored | Advice ignored |
Mr Kerry arrived in Cairo on Sunday on an unannounced visit, the most senior US official there since the election. | Mr Kerry arrived in Cairo on Sunday on an unannounced visit, the most senior US official there since the election. |
At a news conference after talks with Mr Sisi, he said he had "candid" discussions with the Egyptian leader on broad range of issues. | |
He stressed that "Egyptian society is stronger" when all citizens had a say. | |
"For Egypt, this is a moment of high stakes and also a big opportunity," Mr Kerry said, acknowledging that a number of promises by Egyptian leaders "are yet to be fulfilled". | |
Before the talks with Mr Sisi began, Mr Kerry said that Washington was " very interested in working closely with President Sisi and his cabinet and Egypt in order to help make this transition as rapidly and smoothly as possible." | |
Egypt remains a strategic ally for Washington, and Mr Kerry's visit so soon after Mr Sisi's inauguration shows the US is still keen to engage actively and early on with the new president in the hope it will make a difference, reports the BBC's Kim Ghattas, who is travelling with Mr Kerry. | |
But our correspondent says that the last time Mr Kerry was in Cairo in November his advice was ignored. | |
Washington fears that the winner-takes-all attitude to politics in the region, from Egypt to Iraq is feeding instability, she adds. | |
Who is Egypt's new president? | Who is Egypt's new president? |
Profile: Abdul Fattah al-Sisi | Profile: Abdul Fattah al-Sisi |