CAIRO: The United States Department of State spokesman Philip Crowley said that Washington wants a political process that is more inclusive and competitive in Egypt. His comments are the first official expression of Washington`s position towards the upcoming presidential elections in Egypt next year and come on the backdrop of the excitement generated by the former IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei’s return to Egypt, which has galvanized a stalled opposition community.

Crowley said in remarks to reporters on Monday that Washington wants a political process “more inclusive” and “competitive” in Egypt. Egypt has largely rebuffed efforts by foreign governments to dictate reform and change in the country.

Speaking at the daily press briefing, the spokesman said: “I think we’d like to see the emergence of more inclusive political process in Egypt and (political process) that would be more competitive and give the opportunity to more citizens in Egypt to participate in the process and to gain the faith and the opportunity to shape the future governance of that country.”

The spokesman made the remarks on behalf of the State Department, in response to a question posed to him about Washington’s vision for the return of the country’s leading international figure, ElBaradei, to Egypt, after the end of his second term at the International Atomic Energy Agency and how this can strengthen the reform movement and the opposition.

However, Crowley, with a mark of Washington’s keenness on non-interference in Egyptian affairs, said that “these decisions must be taken by Egypt.”

ElBaradei, 67, who returned to Cairo on February 18, from Vienna after spending 12 years with the IAEA, has conditioned his candidacy for the running in the 2011 presidential campaign with guarantees of fair elections in the country.

He also announced that a number of Egyptian opposition figures on February 23rd establishment the so-called “National Assembly for Change” to press for the abolition of restrictions on the rules of citizens to run for president and guarantees for the integrity of elections.

BM

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