Up and Coming: Cameron arrives for Egypt visit

David Cameron's visit comes just 10 days after Egypt's president was ousted

David Cameron has arrived in Egypt, the first world leader to visit the country since President Hosni Mubarak was forced out of office.

The UK prime minister will hold talks with officials from the country, which is under military rule.

He said his visit was a "great opportunity" to push for democracy to be established in Egypt.

Mr Mubarak stood down 10 days ago amid widespread protests against his regime by pro-democracy activists.

Mr Cameron is due to hold talks with the head of the armed forces supreme council, defence minister Mohamed Tantawi, as well as the country's Prime Minister, Ahmed Shafiq.

Meetings with figures from the anti-Mubarak opposition movement have also been arranged, although they will not include representatives of the Muslim Brotherhood - the banned Islamic group which is thought to have widespread public support.

Speaking on the flight to Cairo, Mr Cameron said: "This is a great opportunity for us to go and talk to those currently running Egypt to make sure this really is a genuine transition from military rule to civilian rule and see what friendly countries like Britain and others in Europe can do to help.

"I am particularly keen... to get to Egypt and to be one of the first people there."

Part of his agenda will be a call for the lifting of emergency laws, which have been in place for more than 30 years.

Mr Cameron said: "What is so refreshing about what's been happening is that this is not an Islamist revolt. This is not extremists on the streets. This is people who want to have the sort of basic freedoms that we take for granted in the UK."

The prime minister had planned to make a trade-centred tour of the Middle East but altered his schedule to visit Egypt.

BBC deputy political editor James Landale, who is travelling with Mr Cameron, said it was extraordinary for a British prime minister to engage in full-on diplomacy in a country that is still "in flux".

But he added: "The prime minister believes that there's a window of opportunity for western leaders like him to give what his advisers are calling 'candid' advice. The danger is that he's seen as lecturing a country and that he's seen as legitimising a temporary regime, rather than giving it a further nudge towards reform."

The visit also comes while anti-government protests are raging in Libya and Bahrain.

Asked about the violent treatment of demonstrators against Muammar Gaddafi's regime in Libya in recent days, Mr Cameron said: "Our message, as it has been throughout this - I think we have been extremely consistent in saying that the response to the aspirations people are showing on the streets of these countries must be one of reform not repression.

"We can see what is happening in Libya which is completely appalling and unacceptable as the regime is using the most vicious forms of repression against people who want to see that country, which is one of the most closed and one of the most autocratic, make progress.

Meanwhile, UK Foreign Secretary William Hague is in Brussels for talks on the violence in Libya.

Oil firm BP has said it is preparing to evacuate some of its staff and their families from the country over the next day or so. The company has 40 foreign employees in Libya.

This article is from the BBC News website. � British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Up and Coming

Monday, February 21, 2011

Cameron arrives for Egypt visit

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