Is it time to re-evaluate the United States’ relationship with Egypt?
Egypt, the Arab world’s most populous country, was back in the news yesterday after a criminal court sentenced 529 people to death in connection with the death of a police officer. The case is disturbing to rights activists on multiple levels. The entire proceeding only lasted two sessions. Furthermore, the verdict brings the concept of “guilty by association” to an entirely new level, with more than 300 of the accused being sentences in absentia. Many in the media have pointed out that the sentencing further displays how politicized the Egyptian judicial system has become since the ouster of former President Mohammed Morsi last June.
The situation in Egypt is vastly important for American interests in the region. Aside from being the most populous country in the Middle East and one of the largest countries in Africa, Egypt shares borders with two U.S. allies, Israel and Jordan. For those not following the situation in depth, here is a quick recap:
In 2011, the so-called “Arab Spring” reached Egypt, and millions of Egyptians flooded Tahrir Square in central Cairo calling for President Hosni Mubarak to relinquish power. Mubarak did not last more than a month, and when the dust settled, Egyptians claimed that they had finally won their democracy and U.S. President Barack Obama called the Egyptian people “the greatest in the world.”
In 2012, Mohammed Morsi, running as a candidate for the Muslim Brotherhood, was elected president in a tight election. Morsi, however, would not complete more than a year in office. After a year of bumbling speeches and claims of his seizing “dictatorial powers,” Morsi was himself kicked out of office.
Egyptians and political analysts argue over exactly what to call the ouster of President Morsi. Those who protested against the Muslim Brotherhood claim that the June protests were a legitimate revolution and that the military, which actually deposed Morsi, was simply acting out the will of the people. Supporters of Morsi, and many others, argue that the event was nothing more than a military coup.
For the United States, wording is key. According to U.S. law, foreign aid, which is currently provided to Egypt to the tune of over a billion dollars a year, cannot be supplied to a country in which the military has intervened in civilian affairs. Finding itself in a tight spot, the White House announced that aid to Egypt would be cut off indefinitely.
As it turns out, “indefinitely” is not a very long time. In December of 2013, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee overturned the U.S. legislation blocking aid to Egypt, and the pump of U.S. aid to Egypt was turned back on.
This brings us to our current situation. The U.S. government is providing Egypt with over $1.5 billion in aid per year. The Egyptian government, currently under the guidance of interim President Adly Mansour, has recently furthered crackdowns on student protesters, journalists and rival political groups. In addition, a constitution recently released by a special committee had a number of ambiguities regarding media censorship, civilian oversight of the military and the right to protest.
Some analysts argue that the current situation in Egypt is exactly what the United States has wanted all along. Morsi had gotten uncomfortably close to Iran in the eyes of many U.S. allies from Tel Aviv to Riyadh. The current government may not be pretty, but it may serve U.S. regional interests quite nicely.
Orion Wilcox is a senior economics major from Bay St. Louis.
