U.S. Ready to Give Nuclear Aid to Egypt, Envoy Says

The United States is prepared to cooperate with Egypt if it decides to pursue a civilian nuclear program, the U.S. ambassador in Cairo said today (see GSN, Sept. 20).

Speaking in Arabic on local television, Ambassador Francis Ricciardone said Washington would have no objections if Egypt sought to exploit nuclear energy, Reuters reported.

“If Egypt, after detailed study on this subject, decides that nuclear power is a positive thing and important for Egypt, was can cooperate in this field. Why not,” he said.

Ricciardone said there can be no comparison between Egypt and Iran, which the United States has charged with hiding nuclear weapon ambitions behind a program to develop uranium enrichment technology.

“Iran has…a program to produce nuclear weapons. This is one thing, but the matter of civilian nuclear energy is something totally different,” he said.

Earlier this week, Gamal Mubarak, son of Egypt’s president and a high-ranking official in the riling National Democratic Party, said that Egypt should consider alternative means of producing electricity, including nuclear power.

Gamal Mubarak is regarded by analysts as a likely successor to his 78-year-old Hosni Mubarak despite claims that he does not wish to assume the role of president held by his father since 1981.

“We have a program, the Global Nuclear Energy Program. We are ready to supply nuclear technology to friendly states which want to benefit from civilian, peaceful nuclear power,” Ricciardone said (Reuters, Boston Globe, Sept. 21).

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