Editor’s Note: The following report is excerpted from Joseph Farah’s G2 Bulletin, the premium online newsletter published by the founder of WND. Subscriptions are $99 a year or, for monthly trials, just $9.95 per month for credit card users, and provide instant access for the complete reports.
WASHINGTON – Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi’s recent election, representing a victory for the Muslim Brotherhood, may not reflect a radical departure after all from the close ties Egypt had with the United States under ousted President Hosni Mubarak, according to a report in Joseph Farah’s G2 Bulletin.
The reason has to do with the economic realities facing Egypt, which is on the verge of a currency crisis and needs some $12 billion in financing.
Egypt also needs that critical $4.8 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund, but needs U.S. backing.
As a consequence, Morsi is expected to continue looking not only to the United States but Saudi Arabia for vital financial assistance, given the poor state of the Egyptian economy.
The U.S. just recently released $1.6 billion in assistance, of which $1.3 billion went to the Egyptian military. Within the past two weeks, the U.S. also has excused another $1 billion in loans.
Morsi on the one hand publicly wants to show some distance between his country and the U.S. At the same time, he wants and needs a major infusion of U.S. aid.
Morsi recently displayed the early beginnings of an independent foreign policy by looking to develop closer relations than his predecessor with Russia and China. He also refuses to oppose Iran’s nuclear program, although he is more aligned as a Sunni with Saudi Arabia.
At the same time, he was very critical of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, taking the occasion of the recent Non-Aligned Movement conference in Iran to call for his ouster.
This approach has drawn Morsi closer to the U.S. way of thinking, although he will not embrace the close relationship the U.S. had during the Mubarak period. Yet, he is expected to continue backing the Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty which his fellow Muslim Brotherhood members oppose, and will continue cooperating with Israel in policing the Sinai where there has been a rash of recent terrorist attacks on the Jewish state.
In this way, Morsi hopes to continue receiving assistance from the U.S. which still regards Egypt as pivotal in relations with the Arab countries. Washington is expected to accommodate Morsi so long as he maintains moderate foreign and domestic policies.
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