Fahmy told state-run Al-Ahram newspaper on Wednesday that instability in ties between Egypt and the US could hurt the entire Middle East.

US officials said Wednesday that the Obama administration is poised to slash hundreds of millions of dollars in military and economic assistance to Egypt. The announcement is expected this week, once official notifications have been made to all interested parties.

The US has been considering such a move since the Egyptian military ousted the country's first democratically elected leader in July. It would be a dramatic shift for the Obama administration, which has declined to label President Mohamed Morsi's ouster a coup and has argued that it is in US national security interests to keep aid flowing

Egyptian government also criticized on Thursday a US decision to curtail military and economic aid to Cairo after a crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood, although Washington stressed it was not severing ties with its long-standing ally.

The army-backed government insisted Egypt would not bow to US pressure, saying it found the decision strange at a time when the country was "facing a war against terrorism".

However, US Secretary of State John Kerry said Washington would consider resuming some of the aid "on a basis of performance" in following the interim government's "roadmap" that promises to lead to fair elections.

NTJ/BA