By Mostafa Salem
US Deputy Secretary of State William Burns extended his stay in Egypt once again to continue his meetings with different political factions.
The extension follows the decision of Emirati foreign minister Abdullah Al Nahyan and Qatari foreign minister Khalid Al-Attiyah to extend their respective stays, in order to continue their meetings. They were set to leave on Monday.
Burns, Al-Nahyan and Al-Attiyah’s visits add to the increasing diplomatic presence in Egypt, which currently includes EU special representative, Bernadino Leon.
Badr Abdel Atty, spokesman for the foreign ministry, denied the meeting of Qatari foreign minister with Nabil Fahmy, while confirming Burns’ meeting. The Qatari embassy had no information about who their minister is set to meet.
Burns met on Sunday with a Freedom and Justice Party delegation, including ex-ministers Amro Darrag and Mohamed Aly Beshr, as well as with Tarek Al-Malt from Al-Wasat Party.
The extension of Burns’ trip was announced late Sunday evening, a day before the expected arrival of Senators John McCain and Leslie Graham Monday to Egypt.
