Wednesday, 11 September 2013 - Strasbourg

Pino Arlacchi (S&D ). - Mr President, the military coup of July left Egypt in a very unstable dangerous situation. There were more than 1 000 victims and many more injured. I do not like the Muslim Brotherhood and similar groups but I am also firmly convinced that any act of exclusion against a political force that accepts democracy in Egypt is wrong in itself and it can only lead to increased radicalism. Indeed, the only way to build a sustainable democracy in Egypt is the path of national reconciliation and an inclusive political process. Moreover, the EU should not penalise the Egyptian population by suspending our aid to their country. The EU should proceed with establishing an EU mechanism providing legal and technical assistance to Arab Spring countries in the process of asset recovery.

[source:www.europarl.europa.eu]