US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has expressed hope that emergency laws in Egypt would be lifted before June 2012, the timeline set by the interim ruling military council of the country.
"We have encouraged and continued to encourage the government to lift the state of emergency. The Supreme Council has said that it will be in a position to do so in (June) 2012," Clinton told reporters after her meeting with the Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohamed Kamel Amr yesterday.
"We hope to see the law lifted sooner than that, because we think that is an important step on the way to the rule of law, to the kind of system of checks and balances that are important in protecting the rights of the Egyptian people, to create the context for free and democratic elections, and we want to see this as soon as possible," she said adding that the issue was discussed in her meeting with Amr.
Clinton said the Egyptian people look to the Supreme Council to support the transition and to ensure that the elections go in a very positive way that provides transparency, freedom, and fairness.
"We fully support the Egyptian people in their journey. We are looking forward to the parliamentary elections this fall, the upper house in parliament, the presidential elections to follow," she said.
Egypt's military said a week ago that the country's decades-old emergency law is designed to be in place until June 2012 as decreed by law, but left the door open to having it lifted or amended.
Amr said Egypt and the US have enjoyed a longtime friendship and partnership.
"The United States assisted Egypt in many ways in its development and it continues do so, and we are sure that our cooperation and our friendship will only strengthen in the future. Both our countries have worked in the past for peace and stability in the Middle East and beyond, and we will continue to do that,” the Foreign Minister said.
Egypt, the Minister said, now is in the middle of a transitional period.
"During this period, we look forward to the solidarity and goodwill of all our partners. It is our expectation that our friends in the United States will demonstrate their commitment, as usual, to this partnership, and I am pleased to say that I have heard from the Secretary such a commitment explicitly today," he said.
