US to partially cut military aid to Egypt amidst unrest

The cut down on military aid is expected to be more than one billion dollars, says CNN

The White House has indicated that the US might cut down partially on its military aid to Egypt, in wake of the coup against President Mohamed Morsy in July and the turmoil that followed.

A senior US official said that some military aid could continue, including funds to uphold Egypt's obligations under its peace treaty with Israel, and money for counterterrorism and security in Sinai apart from a nonmilitary funding that helps democracy promotion.

According to CNN, the cut down on military aid is expected to be more than one billion dollars, given each year prompted by an accumulation of events, including the recent violence against protesters.

National Security Council spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden denied that the US is halting all military assistance but testified for an announcement for a partial cut.

US administration has not labeled Morsy's removal from office a coup, as it would require cutting all aids except humanitarian aid.

An Arab affairs analyst at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Robin Wright said that the cut on aid was seen as coming for quite a while and Obama signaled that the US was slowing down aid to Egypt in his address at the UN just a couple of weeks ago.

He further added that US has become increasingly disillusioned with the way that the military leadership has cracked down on its own people with over 1,000 killed in the early weeks after the military coup and many more were killed in confrontations.

The report said that a cut off in US aid is symbolically significant and is likely anger those Gulf allies who have urged the US to support the military and warned against stopping assistance.