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AmCham Egypt Follow up Mission to Washington, D.C., 2001

Last April, at the end of AmCham Egypt’s 2001 DoorKnock mission, the Board of Governors and other AmCham delegates agreed on the need to follow up on the achievements of these annual trips with smaller visits to Washington at other times of the year. This sentiment came to fruition from November 26 to December 3 in a short but intensive visit to the US capital by a delegation composed of AmCham president Mohamed Mansour, vice president for membership Anis Aclimandos, vice president for programs Hamed Fahmy and executive director Hisham Fahmy.

The purpose of the visit was to extend condolences to US policymakers after the September 11 attacks and to express the support of the Egyptian private sector against terrorism. “We emphasized that Egypt has also been a victim of terrorism and that we understand the difficulties the US is going through,” Mansour said. “We faced the problem for the last 20 years.”

During the course of the visit, the delegation met with high-ranking US policymakers including Vice President Richard Cheney; Undersecretary of State for Economic, Business & Agricultural Affairs Alan Larson; Undersecretary of State for Public Diplomacy & Public Affairs Charlotte Beers; Undersecretary of Defense Dov Zakheim; and Assistant Secretary of Defense Peter Rodman. Meetings were also held with key leaders in the Senate, namely Ted Stevens (R-Alaska), Arlen Specter (R-Pennsylvania), Chuck Hagel (R-Nebraska) and congressmen Philip Crane (R-Illinois), Ben Gilman (R-New York), William Jefferson (D-Louisiana), Donald Payne (D-New Jersey) and John Sununu (R-New Hampshire).

The willingness of these policymakers to meet with the AmCham delegation reflects the importance of Egypt and its role in battling terrorism. “We appreciate Egypt’s response to the events of September 11,” Undersecretary of State Larson said. “Egypt has suffered more than most from terrorism and can therefore appreciate what the US is going through.”

In mid-December, after the delegation had returned home, Larson met in Cairo with AmCham Egypt’s Board of Governors to discuss strategies of mutual support between the two countries.

While in Washington, the AmCham delegates also met with USAID administrator Andrew Natsios, who promised that USAID would continue to support the upgrading and strengthening of the Egyptian economy. Moving beyond official circles, the delegation held discussions with members of the Brookings Institution, the Middle East Institute and the Arab American Institute, as well as New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman and Washington Times foreign editor David Jones along with other members of the WT’s foreign desk.

In all of its meetings, the delegation stressed several key points:

• the positive support Egypt has been giving the United States since September 11
• the negative impact of the September 11 attacks on the Egyptian economy and the need for US support to help alleviate the repercussions
• the unfairness of criticisms in some articles in the US press regarding the level of support that Egypt is giving
• the potential value to the United States of a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Egypt
• the positive results of USAID support over the years and the importance of continuing and accelerating USAID programs
• the importance of maintaining communications and visits to Egypt by Congress members and their staff

The US administration is aware of the negative impact of September 11 on the Egyptian economy and the consequent need for accelerated US assistance. “We are concerned about Egypt’s economy and would like to help out as much as we can,” Congressman Gilman said.

On the trade front, the administration has shown renewed interest in the possibility of an FTA with Egypt, and the prospects look good for talks to begin soon.

Significant elements in the US business community are on board, too. The US Chamber of Commerce “will continue to support an FTA with Egypt,” according to US Chamber president Tom Donohue, who said he intended to visit the country during 2002.

Political considerations may favor an FTA one month and not the next, but in terms of commerce, free trade should ultimately be to everyone’s benefit. “We will support the partnership with Egypt on its own merit,” Donohue said. “It makes good business sense.”

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