US Seeks to Resume Major Military Exercises With Egypt - US Central Command Head

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The United States seeks to resume military exercises with Egypt that was scrapped by former US President Barack Obama in 2013 amid Cairo's crackdown on protesters in the country, head of the US Central Command Gen. Joseph Votel said Monday.

"It is my goal to get that exercise back on track and try to re-establish that as another key part of our military relationship," Votel was quoted as saying by the New York Times newspaper.

The statement came after Votel's meeting with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Sisi and the country's senior military officials.

Relations between Cairo and Washington started to deteriorate after the ouster of Egyptian then-president Hosni Mubarak. During almost 30 years of his rule, Egypt has become one of the top recipients of US military aid. The aid was suspended after the 2013 military coup when the country's first democratically elected president Mohamed Morsi was ousted.

In March 2015, Obama ordered to resume military exports to Egypt to help fight rising terrorism in the region, including Daesh (outlawed in Russia), and encourage reforms in the country. In July, the United States sent eight F-16 fighter planes to Egypt. In addition, the White House earlier agreed to grant Egypt annual financial assistance amounting to $1.3 billion.

In April 2016, the US administration decided to resume full arms deliveries and to continue financial military support.