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Egypt combats CIA-imposed Economic Crisis
-DR. ABDUL RUFF
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By following the footsteps of Libya of Col. Qaddafi who is keen to strengthen Libyan economy and advance people’s welfare without in any way depending on the western financial agencies like International Monetary Fund and the World Bank (IMF and W.B), the new Egyptian transit government has opted out for loans from these agencies by imperialist nations run for their own sake.
The “freedom struggles” in Mideast, engineered by CIA to advance US economic and political interests has unleashed acute tensions, huge deaths and devastating economic lose in Egypt which had a medium economy before the “revolution”. . The “uprisings” challenge in Mideast has grown acute in Egypt since the fall of President Hosni Mubarak. The month-long anti-government protest has caused tourism and investor revenue to dry up at a time when high popular expectations have increased the pressure on the budget. Revenues from tourism, a mainstay of the economy, have plummeted by 40 percent. CIA and Obama thought once Mubarak steps down Col. Qaddafi would automatically leave and let the CIA take over Libyan energy resources. That did not and will not happen.
Egyptian economy has been floundering since the spring revolutions because of a collapse in tourism and trade. Cairo has been asking donors and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to help bridge a funding gap through mid-2012 estimated at between $10 billion and $12 billion in the wake of the mass protests that ousted President Hosni Mubarak on Feb. 11. Egypt's economy contracted by an estimated 7 percent in the January-to-March quarter. IMF placed huge conditions and Egypt has rightly rejected them.
Political instability is costing Egypt $40m (about £25m) a day in lost tourism revenues, while growth has more than halved and inflation has risen. Foreign investment has dried up. Factories are paralyzed by strikes. Meanwhile, prices for food and energy have surged, leaving people feeling deeply insecure ahead of crucial parliamentary and presidential elections in the fall.
The new post-Mubarak military government is struggling hard to put its economy back onto the rails, apart form improving relations with Turkey, Iran and its neighbors, especially the Palestinians. . In order to ward off any imperialist threats in future on financial issues, Egypt recently turned down a $3 billion package offered by the International Monetary Fund and a $4.5 billion package from the World Bank.
In stead, Egypt depends on aid from the wealthy Arab nations. The government has been trying to raise capital, mostly from Arab nations, to offset a budget deficit in excess of $22 billion. Saudi Arabia on May 21has pledged $4 billion in aid to Egypt. The aid will be in the form of soft loans, deposits and grants, Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, head of the council. Tantawi called the King Abdullah on 02 July and thanked him for providing the financial assistance to his cash-strapped country. The Egyptian leader highlighted the historic ties between the two Arab countries and commended the Kingdom for standing by his country during "these trying times." The United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced on 05th July that it will provide Egypt with $3 billion in aid. The Saudi package would support Egypt's general budget, the central bank, development and other projects and bond purchases. Half of the UAE aid amount is meant for creating a fund to create job opportunities for Egyptian youth; and $750 million is earmarked for infrastructure and housing projects, also for youth.
Apparently, Arab donors delay the payment of aid to Cairo citing various reasons. Egyptian officials have said there is a balance of payments deficit of $11.5 billion resulting from the political unrest and the collapse of the Mubarak government. USA and EU, claiming to be legal guardians of Arab interests, obviously by controlling their energy resources, have effectively influenced the Arab decisions on foreign policy matters, including their foreign aid.
In recent times, USA, G8 and EU also have promised aid to Egypt as well as Tunisia to “help” the regime to stabilize itself. On 26 May, the European commission president, José Manuel Barroso, confirmed at the G8 summit in Deauville that the 27-member EU would provide €1.24bn (£1bn) in "fresh new money" to its neighbours in the east and across the Mediterranean. Colonialist UK is to set aside £110m over the next four years to foster democracy and economic growth in Tunisia and Egypt as part of a wider international package to show support for the Arab spring.
The US is the largest contributor, offering $4bn in aid and loans. President Obama delivered a “major address” on what role the US should play in the post-“Arab Spring” world, in which he pledged US economic help for Arab countries that embrace democracy.
The most important aspect of western aid is it has a powerful political tool attached and places a strong political impact too. Those calling for new support seem to forget that the deposed regimes already received plenty of international aid finance. Under the aegis of the IMF& WB, they presided over elaborate privatization and reform programs, which benefited those close to power but did little to help the wider population. In truth the regimes tended to use this support to strengthen their rule, building state security apparatuses and creating kleptocratic governments accountable only to their foreign bankrollers.
Arab nations must stop taking loans from the West that gives them at 30% of interest rates to keep them enslaved so that the sovereignty of one's nation is not threatened. America continues printing its paper note & lends it at 30% of interest to the congressmen as well as to the poor nations of the world- directly and through IMF.
Egypt is now on a balancing act, struggling to hold on and revive a fast crippling economy by rejecting imperialist conditions of IMF and seeking to obtain aid from willing, helpful Arab nations. Saudi is an excellent example of generous nation to both western & the eastern nations.
Neither a strong Egypt nor a sovereign Libya can worry the western terrocracies too much, after all, their chief concern centers around the resources and reduction of global Islamic populations. West is keen to destabilize entire Islamic world and make them fight one another.
Notorious UNSC and NATO organizations led by USA-UK terror twins that control literally the globe - all global institutions including the ICJ and ICC, are on terror voyage through Islamic world, citing ridiculous reasons and consuming the corpses of Muslims in thousands and millions.
A close ally of NATO, Israel also kills defenseless Palestinians and use the corpses as a bargain chip with the Palestinian leadership over their freedom struggle for an independent Palestine state to be a full member of UN. A recent announcement by Israeli military minister Ehud Barak, former terror PM of Israel, that he had placed a hold on plans to transfer the bodies of 84 Palestinian terrorists killed in attacks on Jews has sparked outrage among Israelis who knew nothing about the plan until Barak’s announcement. Washington which claims to be crusader for the cause of freedom and democracy does not open its dirty mouth on the issue. UNSC seems to have given blanket approval of Zionist crimes against humanity.
Economic evils of Egypt are not state specific at all- this is a general scenario of all NATO occupied Muslim nations- from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Palestine, Kashmir to Libya. They destroy the Muslim nations in a sustained manner and pretend to be rebuilding them with resources having been looted from these failed countries by offering contacts to their western corporate bosses.
More and more Muslim nations are coming under NATO attack cum occupation, killing Muslims. These western NATO led anti-Islamic war manger states must be brought to justice for their crimes against humanity at the earliest - but who will tie the bell?
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