NY Times: Delivery of Helicopters Shows Mending of U.S.-Egypt Ties

The New York Times declared today ,according to what security officials said Saturday, that Egypt received 10 Apache helicopters from the United States in the past week. It said that it is a sign that tensions between the longtime allies are easing as they confront Islamist extremism across the region.

According to NY times, The Pentagon said in September that the United States would deliver the helicopters, built by Boeing, to support Egypt’s counterterrorism efforts. It added that Egypt is fighting an Islamist insurgency that has been targeting mostly security personnel and is based mainly in the lawless Sinai Peninsula bordering Israel and the Gaza Strip.

It also pointed out that President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi has also expressed concern over militants who are thriving in the chaos of Libya since the downfall of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi in 2011 and who are opposed to the Egyptian government.

In another sign of improving relations between the countries, Robert Stephen Beecroft, the new American ambassador to Egypt, arrived in Cairo on Thursday after the previous ambassador left the post more than a year ago.