US reaffirms support of Egyptian democracy

US Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labour Michael Posner has reaffirmed his country's support of democracy in Egypt. Speaking on Sunday following a meeting with Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohammed Kamel Amr, Posner said his visit to Cairo was part of ongoing and constructive talks with the Egyptian government and spoke of major "challenges" facing Egypt. The US official urged all parties to adopt dialogue to resolve the country's problems and highlighted the large spectrum of opinions and attitudes in Egypt. Posner stated that it was up to the Egyptian people as to whether presidential elections should be held early. He added that his country strongly supports the democratic process in Egypt, which includes the upcoming parliamentary elections, which he said he hoped would be free, fair and transparent. Responding to a question on the Islamist domination of the process of drafting the country's current constitution, he emphasised that there are points of contention in the constitution that need to be discussed further. The assistant secretary also said he would be meeting with Egyptian government officials tomorrow. Posner is due to talk to Shura Council member and head of the Social Affairs Committee at Egypt's National Council for Human Rights NCHR Mona Makram Ebeid.