Over the last two decades the US has cut its economic aid to Egypt significantly, according to a report issued by the US Congress research unit, which notes that both states agreed in late 1990 to downsize aid within ten years. According to the report, economic aid dropped from US$815 million in 1998 to US$411 million in 2008, and is expected to amount to just US$250 million next year. The report reveals that officials on both sides expressed their desire to remove Egypt from the list of economic aid recipients upon expiry of the ten-year deadline, and their intention to boost trade between the two countries. The two states have not yet agreed on exactly how to downsize aid over the next ten years, says the report, although Cairo is keen to establish an endowment body to manage the funding of development projects. Analysts quoted in the report say such a move would protect the aid against any conditions imposed by Congress. Translated from the Arabic Edition.
