The United States is closer to finalizing an aid package for Egypt to relieve $1 billion in debt to assist the nation as it works to strengthen democracy, The New York Times reported Monday.
The deal was first proposed more than a year ago, but U.S. officials delayed because the country’s political situation was unclear, reported the Times, citing unnamed American officials.
The report also said the Obama administration supports an International Monetary Fund loan to Egypt of $4.8 billion sought by the nation. The aid is to help the country stabilize itself after months of turmoil following the dramatic fall of longtime President Hosni Mubarak in February 2011.
Egypt President Mohamed Morsi has made it clear that he wants to boost jobs and he and his advisers have expressed surprising interest and openness to economic reforms, reports the Times.
With the lure of a new investment climate, the State Department and the United States Chamber of Commerce have organized a Sept. 8 trade delegation to Cairo of 50 American executives from companies such as Caterpillar and Xerox.
Officials told the publication that a stable Egypt will influence the rest of North Africa and the Middle East, a region rocked by uprising and unrest last year. The move would also make Israel, which shares a border with Egypt, less uneasy.
On Monday, Egypt withdrew around 20 tanks from the Sinai Peninsula after it deployed troops there a month ago to combat terrorism directed at both Israel and Egypt, The Associated Press reported. The withdrawal was requested by Israel, which pointed to the 1979 peace treaty that forbids heavy weapons in the region.
