Jumblat calls on Arabs to support crisis-hit Egypt

Walid Jumblat, Chairman of Lebanese Progressive Socialist Party called Monday for the support of Egypt amid its economic hardships.

"Egypt is going through very dangerous circumstances as a result of the conditions of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the scarcity of resources, the narrowness of agricultural lands, and the high prices of imported wheat after the Ukraine war," Jumblat said in a tweet.

The Egyptian economy has been hit hard by years of government austerity, the Coronavirus pandemic, and the fallout from the war in Ukraine.

He added Egypt is the world’s largest wheat importer, with most of its imports having traditionally come from eastern Europe.

Jumblat said that "the Arab world has a surplus of money and is confused about how to use it."

He went on to say that "whatever the circumstances might be, supporting Egypt means supporting Arab stability and resilience above all else."

The Egyptian pound had fallen this month from around 24.7 for $1 to just over 26.3 against the US dollar, some three weeks after Egypt and the IMF formally ratified the support package, approved in exchange for a number of economic reforms implemented by the country’s Central Bank, including a shift to a flexible exchange rate.