Egypt looks to Russia for arms after U.S. cutoff
Egypt is reported looking to Moscow to supply it with weapons following U.S. President Barack Obama's decision to suspend a large part of the $1.3 billion in military aide Washington provides Cairo to protest the army's July 3 ouster of President Mohamed Morsi.
Egyptian Foreign Minister Nabil Fahmy has acknowledged relations between the military-backed government in Cairo and the Obama White House are in "turmoil" following the Oct. 9 suspension. He warned Egypt, the Arab world's most populous nation and a longtime U.S. ally, would have to find "other sources" to supply its national security requirements. The Cairo government has had little to say officially on what it plans to do to counter the U.S. action, possibly because it does not want to aggravate a highly sensitive situation. However, Israel's Channel 2 television reports the "other sources" to which Fahmy referred means Russia. It said Cairo is now looking to conclude a major arms deal with Moscow.
