Cairo, November 19: Egypt has slammed the US for interfering in its internal affairs after Washington called for international observers to monitor the country’s upcoming parliamentary elections.
In a surprisingly harsh tone, Cairo criticized Washington in a statement on Thursday for meddling in internal affairs of a sovereign nation.
“The latest positions taken by the administration towards internal Egyptian affairs is something that is absolutely unacceptable,” AFP quoted the statement released by the Egyptian foreign ministry on Friday.
“It is as if the United States has turned into a caretaker of how Egyptian society should conduct its own politics,” it argued.
“It seems that the US insists on not respecting the privacy of the Egyptian society and making statements that incense Egypt’s nationalism,” it further added. “Whoever thinks that this is possible is deluded.”
The statement explained that Egypt would continue reciprocal relationship with the United States as long as Washington showed mutual respect for Cairo.
On Monday, the US State Department called on Egypt to hold a free election and allow international monitors to observe the November 28 parliamentary poll.
In response to the Egyptian criticism, US State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley announced that Washington is keeping a close eye on the elections to make sure it meets the international standards.
“This is not interfering in Egyptian affairs. This is encouraging a very close friend of the United States that its elections are vitally important and that its people want to see and have opportunities for greater participation in Egypt’s political system and have a government that is more representative of all segments of Egyptian society,” he added.
——–Agencies