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Egypt leader on defensive over claims he mocked Gulf allies

EGYPTIAN President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi scrambled to avert any damage to ties with Arab Gulf countries after he and his aides were allegedly caught on audiotape mocking his crucial oil-rich allies and discussing how to milk them for billions, AP reported.   El-Sissi’s rapid-fire phone calls to leaders of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab…

EGYPTIAN President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi scrambled to avert any damage to ties with Arab Gulf countries after he and his aides were allegedly caught on audiotape mocking his crucial oil-rich allies and discussing how to milk them for billions, AP reported.

  El-Sissi’s rapid-fire phone calls to leaders of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates on Monday reflected the pivotal role that financial aid from those nations – givers of more than $20 billion in the past year alone – plays in sustaining Egypt’s battered economy following four years of instability.

  Prime Minister Ibrahim Mahlab insisted that the tapes – the latest in a string of purportedly leaked tapes of private conversations within el-Sissi’s inner circle that emerged the past year- were fakes, a defense viewed with substantial skepticism in Egypt and the wider region. Mahlab told a Saudi newspaper, al-Hayat, Tuesday that the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood of ousted President Mohammed Morsi fabricated the recordings using actors to “drive a wedge” between Egypt and its Gulf partners.

  Mahlab said the aim was to wreck an upcoming international economic conference being held by Egypt next month, intended to attract foreign investment especially from Gulf countries. El-Sissi has received strong backing from Gulf nations for overthrowing Morsi in 2013 and opposing Islamists and militants, a common concern for Egypt and the Gulf states.

  According to AP, a statement from the president’s office said el-Sissi, during his telephone calls Monday with Gulf leaders, praised his colleagues’ wisdom and said their strong relations “won’t be undermined by nefarious attempts.”

  The Gulf countries issued their own reassuring public messages to el-Sissi. Saudi Arabia’s official news agency reported that King Salman viewed his kingdom’s relationship with Egypt as “unchangeable.”

 Abu Dhabi’s crown prince, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, told el-Sissi that “any evil attempts” won’t affect the “strong, brotherly relations” between their countries, according to the United Arab Emirates’ news agency.

  In recent months, a Muslim Brotherhood-run TV network called Makamaleen has broadcast what it says are audiotapes recording conversations among el-Sissi and senior generals, which all appeared to have been taped in the office of Major Gen. Abbas Kamel, a top el-Sissi associate. Previous tapes have purported to document how generals conspired to fabricate evidence against Morsi and to manipulate media reports and prosecutors’ handling of key Muslim Brotherhood cases. Makamaleen hasn’t explained how it acquired any of the tapes.

 On the new tape, broadcast Saturday, the voices in the conversation sound like el-Sissi and Kamel. From the context, the conversation appears to take place not long before the May 2014 presidential elections that el-Sissi the former head of the military won.

  The two voices are heard discussing the flow of financial donations from Gulf partners. The voice purported to be el-Sissi talks of requesting that $10 billion be deposited directly in the accounts of Egypt’s military and “pennies to the Central Bank.” He lists specific sums he is seeking, including $10 billion from UAE and $10 billion from Kuwait.

  “The money there is like rice,” he adds, using an Egyptian proverb to mockingly suggest that Gulf States have an endless amount of money.

  The man who sounds like Kamel is heard describing Gulf countries as “half-countries” that need defense help from Egypt. He says future Egyptian deployments should involve “give and take” between Egypt and those receiving the troops. He contrasts this with the 1960s deployments of Egyptian forces to Yemen in a spirit of Arab pan-nationalism, AP reported.

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