Trump administration releases another $195 million in Egypt aid
The Donald Trump administration has issued a national security waiver allowing it to release more military aid despite congressional concerns over Cairo’s human rights record and ties to North Korea.
The Donald Trump administration is releasing another $195 million in military assistance to Egypt after unblocking an identical amount last month, Al-Monitor has learned.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo notified Congress last week about the administration’s decision to override congressional aid restrictions on national security grounds. The notification is required by annual spending legislation that freezes 15% of the annual $1.3 billion military aid budget for Egypt absent progress on human rights and other issues, unless the administration justifies waiving the restriction.
Pompeo’s waiver, which impacts fiscal year 2017 money, comes in spite of mounting concerns on Capitol Hill over Cairo’s errant bombing of a US citizen, its military relationship with North Korea and perennial human rights concerns. Pompeo released another $195 million in military aid held over from fiscal year 2016 last month.
An aide to Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, told Al-Monitor that “the Egyptians clearly haven’t met the human rights conditions in the law” and called Pompeo’s waiver “regrettable.”
