Foreign Ministry defends Fahmy’s remarks on Egypt-US ‘marriage’

Foreign Minister Nabil Fahmy’s description of Egypt’s relationship with the United States as a “marriage” with some “hiccups” were misconstrued, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs declared in an official statement issued on Friday.

In an interview broadcast on the US-based, publicaly funded National Public Radio (NPR) talk show All Things Considered, Fahmy said of Egypt-US relations: “It’s like a marriage. It’s not a fling; it’s not a one-night affair. This is something, if you’re going to invest in it, it’s going to cost you a lot of money. It’s going to take time, you’re going to have to make a lot of decisions.”

“That’s a very unromantic view of marriage you are giving,” All Things Considered host Robert Siegel replied.

“Well mine is going well, and I have been married for 39 years. It is not something you can walk away from so easily,” Fahmy responded.

“What is the state of the marriage right now?” Siegel asked, referring to the marriage between the US and Egypt.

“I think it is well-founded, but any marriage has its hiccups,” the minister concluded.

The remarks provoked the ire of Egyptian commentators, who slammed Fahmy for tarnishing Egypt’s image abroad.

In its statement, the ministry suggested that local media misconstrued the interview due to a mistranslation from English to Arabic.

“The minister said that unlike transient relationships between other countries, the relationship between Egypt and the US is long-term, and is like a marriage in that it needs effort and maintenance,” the statement said.

The statement added that the relationship between the two countries should be based on mutual interest and should not involve any intervention into internal affairs.

The remarks came following the minister’s recent visit to the US in late April, just days after the Pentagon said it would lift its hold on the delivery of Apache helicopters to Egypt. This was Fahmy’s first trip stateside since the appointment of a military-backed government on July 3.

Egypt is hoping to mend relations with the US, which grew strained in the violent aftermath of former President Mohamed Morsi’s ouster. The US initially condemned the military's intercession and subsequent crackdown on Islamists.