美國暫停部分對埃及援助 埃及譴責稱不會投降

The United States said on Wednesday it would withhold deliveries of tanks, fighter aircraft, helicopters and missiles as well as $260 million in cash assistance from Egypt's military-backed government pending progress on democracy and human rights.

The decision, described by U.S. officials, demonstrates U.S. unhappiness with Egypt's path since its army on July 3 ousted Mohamed Mursi, who emerged from the Muslim Brotherhood to become Egypt's first democratically elected leader last year.

But the State Department said it would not cut off all aid and would continue military support for counterterrorism, counter-proliferation and security in the Sinai Peninsula, which borders U.S. ally Israel.

It also said it would continue to provide funding that benefits the Egyptian people in such areas as education, health and the development of the private sector.

The split decision illustrates the U.S. dilemma in Egypt: a desire to be seen promoting democracy along with a need to keep up cooperation with a nation of strategic importance because of its control of the Suez Canal, its 1979 peace treaty with Israel and its status as the most populous nation in the Arab world.

"We will ... continue to hold the delivery of certain large-scale military systems and cash assistance to the government pending credible progress toward an inclusive, democratically elected civilian government through free and fair elections," State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said in a statement.

Mursi's supporters and security forces have repeatedly clashed since the Islamist president's ouster, including on Sunday, one of the bloodiest days since the military took power, with state media reporting 57 people dead.

Jon Alterman, director of the Middle East program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank in Washington, said it was doubtful Washington would gain any leverage over Cairo by withholding the aid.

"It may make some Americans feel better about the U.S. role in the world, but it's hard to imagine how it changes how the Egyptian government behaves," he said.

On September 24, President Barack Obama said Washington would continue to work with the interim authorities in Cairo, but faulted them for anti-democratic moves such an emergency law and restrictions on opposition parties, the media and civil society.

Speaking to reporters in a conference call, U.S. officials said the United States would withhold deliveries of M1A1 Abrams tank kits made by General Dynamics Corp, F-16 aircraft produced by Lockheed Martin Corp, and Apache helicopters and Harpoon missiles built by Boeing Co.

But they stressed the withholding of such big-ticket military items was not meant to be permanent and would be reviewed periodically along with Egypt's progress on human rights and democracy.

U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel called Egyptian army chief General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to tell him about the U.S. decisions, speaking for about 40 minutes in what one U.S. official described as a friendly conversation.

Hagel stressed the importance of the U.S.-Egypt relationship but also underscored the U.S. view that Egypt needed to make progress toward democracy.

On August 14, Egypt's military-backed authorities smashed the two pro-Mursi sit-ins in Cairo, with hundreds of deaths, and then declared a state of emergency and imposed a curfew. Many of the Brotherhood's leaders have been arrested since.

Officials at Lockheed Martin, Boeing and General Dynamics Corp declined comment, referring queries to the U.S. government or military offices handling the weapons sales.

The United States has struggled to define its policy toward Egypt since the 2011 popular revolution that toppled its longtime ally, Hosni Mubarak, an authoritarian who had ruled the country for three decades.

While the United States tried to work with Mursi, announcing in March that it would give Egypt $250 million in economic aid, including $190 million in budget support, it became disenchanted with his failure to enact economic reforms or govern in a manner that brought the opposition into the political discourse.

Egypt for decades has been among the largest recipients of U.S. military and economic aid because of its 1979 peace treaty with U.S. ally Israel, which agreed as a result of the pact to withdraw from the Sinai Peninsula it seized from Egypt in 1967.

The United States has long provided Egypt with about $1.55 billion in annual aid, including $1.3 billion for the military.據英國媒體報道，美國國務院10月9日表示，鑑於埃及目前的民主和人權狀況，美國政府決定暫停部分對埃及軍方所支持政府的援助，包括交付坦克、戰鬥機、直升機和導彈，以及2.6億美元的經濟援助。埃及譴責美方做法，表示不會向“美國壓力投降”

***美國暫停援助

美國官員稱，美國國防部長哈格爾與埃及國防部長塞西進行了40分鐘“非常友好”的通話，向其通報了這一決定。美國國務院女發言人普薩基在一份聲明中說：“我們將繼續暫停交付一些大型軍事裝備和對埃政府的現金援助，直到其朝着通過自由和公正的選舉產生包容性的民主文職政府的方向取得可信的進展。”

埃及外交部發言人巴德爾•阿卜德拉蒂(Badr Abdelatty)說，美國做出錯誤的決定；而埃及不會“向美國的壓力投降，將繼續其民主路線”。

美國多名官員認爲，這一決定表明美國對埃及自今年7月3日罷免前總統穆爾西后所走的路線表示不滿。據悉，自從穆爾西被罷免總統後，他的支持者和埃及安全部隊已多次發生衝突，最近的一次衝突發生在10月6日，那是自軍方掌權後最爲激烈的一次暴力活動，埃及官方媒體報道，有57人在衝突中喪生。

不過美國國務院表示，不會取消對埃及的所有援助，並將繼續提供對該國用於反恐、反大規模殺傷性武器擴散和維護西奈半島安全的軍事支持。據悉，西奈半島位於埃及北部，與以色列接壤，是著名的旅遊勝地，每年都有大量以色列人前往度假。

美國國務院還強調，美政府決定與埃及政府保持關係，與該政府和埃及人民議會合作，繼續在衛生、教育和私營產業等直接惠及埃及民生的領域提供援助。此前，美國每年向埃及提供約15億美元的援助，其中包括13億美元軍援。

普薩基表示，“我們決定維持與埃及政府的關係，同時重新評估我們對埃及的援助，以最大程度推進我們的利益。”

美國當局看似矛盾的決定表明美國在埃及正處於兩難困境，它渴望促進埃及民主發展，同時需要與這個具有重要戰略地位的國家保持合作。埃及掌握着對蘇伊士運河的控制權，還是阿拉伯世界人口最多的國家。

***專家分析

位於華盛頓的戰略與國際問題研究中心中東項目主任喬恩•奧爾特曼說，他並不看好美國暫停部分援助對埃及進行制約的方式，稱該舉措是否能有效果“令人懷疑”。他說：“這或許能讓一些美國人對美國在世界的角色感覺好點，但很難想象它如何改變埃及政府的行爲。”

9月24日，美國總統奧巴馬稱，華盛頓政府將繼續與埃及過度政府合作，不過對他們反民主的行動表示譴責，比如出臺的緊急狀態法和對反對黨、媒體和公民社會的限制規定。

美國多名官員在一次電話會議上對記者說，美國將暫時拒絕交付M1A1阿布拉姆斯坦克裝備、F-16戰機、阿帕奇直升機以及“魚叉”導彈。不過他們強調拒絕交付這種大型軍事項目並不是意味着今後再不會提供這些援助，他們會定期對埃及的民主和人權進行檢查，然後做出調整。