Egypt cancels foreign minister meeting with Kushner after denial of aid

But the Egyptian president will still be meeting the US delegation led by Jared Kushner, adviser to Donald Trump

FILE - In this May 21, 2017 file photo, U.S. President Donald Trump, right, holds a bilateral meeting with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Riyadh. Egypt’s Foreign Ministry has cancelled a meeting with senior White House advisor Jared Kushner after the U.S. announced aid cuts and delays to Egypt earlier. Kushner arrived on Wednesday, Aug. 23, 2017 on top of U.S. delegation that includes Jason Greenblatt, envoy for international negotiations, and Dina Powell, deputy national security adviser to discuss the possibility of resuming the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
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Egypt called off a scheduled meeting between its foreign minister and top US presidential adviser Jared Kushner on Wednesday after the United States decided to withhold millions of dollars in aid.

But president Abdel Fattah El Sisi would meet the US delegation led by Mr Kushner later in the day, the presidential office said.

Washington had decided to deny Egypt $95.7 million (Dh351.5m) in aid and to delay a further $195m because of its failure to make progress on respecting human rights and democratic norms, two US sources familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.

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"Egypt sees this measure as reflecting poor judgment of the strategic relationship that ties the two countries over long decades and as adopting a view that lacks an accurate understanding of the importance of supporting Egypt's stability," the foreign ministry said.

The decision could have "negative implications" on achieving common goals and interests between the two countries, it added.

Foreign minister Sameh Shoukry had been scheduled to meet the US delegation led by Mr Kushner, a son-in-law to president Donald Trump and a close adviser, on Wednesday in Cairo to discuss the Middle East.

But the meeting was cancelled immediately after the ministry released its statement, a copy of Mr Shoukry's schedule sent out to journalists showed.

A foreign ministry official said the meeting had been cancelled but did not give a reason. A US embassy official in Cairo said Mr Kushner's meeting with Mr Shoukry had never been set in stone because "the schedule was never fixed".