Berlin likely to suspend arms exports to Egypt

Berlin likely to suspend arms exports to Egypt
Mon Aug 19, 2013 17:08:46

As violence escalates in the Egyptian capital Cairo, German Chancellor Angela Merkel has raised possibility of halting arms sale to Egypt.

While speaking to German television station ZDF on Sunday, Merkel said that arms shipments to Egypt could be “subject to measures which clearly show our skepticism about what is happening.”

“No one, whether military or non-military, has the right to use violence against citizens,” Merkel said.

The German chancellor also called on all the European Union member states to act together to address the issue of Egypt.

“We will examine what steps can be taken... we must act together and take the same measures,” Merkel stated, describing the situation in Egypt as “worrying.”

EU diplomats are scheduled to hold emergency talks on Monday in Brussels regarding the violence in Egypt, ahead of any meeting at the ministerial level.

Meanwhile, European Union leaders Herman Van Rompuy and Jose Manuel Barroso warned in a statement on the same day that the EU is ready to “reexamine” its relations with Egypt if there is no end to the bloodshed.

The EU leaders also called on all parties to the conflict in Egypt to exercise restraint.

“While all should exert maximum restraint, we underline the particular responsibility of the interim authorities and of the army in bringing clashes to a halt,” the EU statement read.

“The violence and the killings of these last days cannot be justified nor condoned. Human rights must be respected and upheld.”

Since August 14, more than 800 people have died in Egypt in the brutal crackdown on supporters of the country’s ousted President Mohamed Morsi.

On July 3, the head of the Egyptian armed forces announced that Morsi was no longer in office. The constitution was suspended and the parliament was dissolved.

The interim government in Egypt has been facing international condemnation over the killing of protesters.

Key EU members including France, Germany and Spain have supplied the bulk of the military hardware to Egypt in recent years.

On Monday, EU leaders to convene in Brussels to discuss sanctions against the ruling military regime in Egypt after it killed more than 830 pro-Muslim Brotherhood demonstrators in Cairo and cleared two sit-in camps in the capital.

Security forces attack against protesters also left hundreds injured.

MRKD/SHI

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