III 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. RES. 450 

Reaffirming the United States-Egypt partnership and the Egyptian people’s 

right to free, fair, credible, and peaceful elections on March 26, 2018. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 22, 2018 

Mr. RUBIO (for himself and Mr. MENENDEZ) submitted the following 

resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

RESOLUTION 

Reaffirming the United States-Egypt partnership and the 

Egyptian people’s right to free, fair, credible, and peaceful elections on March 26, 2018. 

Whereas the Governments of the United States and Egypt 

have long-shared a strong bilateral working relationship; 

Whereas respect for democracy, human rights, and civil liberties are fundamental principles of the United States 

and critical to our national security objectives; 

Whereas the Government and people of Egypt have played a 

critical role in global and regional politics; 

Whereas a strong United States-Egypt partnership is important for the peace, stability, and prosperity of the Middle 

East; 


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•SRES 450 IS 

Whereas the people and Government of the United States 

have a deep and abiding interest in Egypt’s prosperity, 

political progress, and long-term stability; 

Whereas an inclusive government responsive to the needs of 

all of its citizens, including religious minorities, is vital 

for such stability and prosperity; 

Whereas international and public confidence in any electoral 

process is an essential element for advancing inclusive, 

representative forms of government; 

Whereas Egypt will hold a presidential election on March 26, 

2018; 

Whereas the Department of State’s 2016 Human Rights Report noted that the 2015 parliamentary election raised 

‘‘concern[s] about restrictions on freedoms of peaceful assembly, association, and expression and their negative effect on the political climate surrounding elections’’; 

Whereas the same report notes that the 2014 presidential 

election raised ‘‘serious concerns regarding constraints on 

the freedoms of expression and association and limits on 

freedom of the press leading up to the election which prevented free political participation and severely compromised the broader electoral environment’’; 

Whereas the Government of Egypt, through legal action and 

a highly restrictive new law, has created a hostile environment for nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), 

which provide essential services to the people of Egypt 

and for whom peaceful association for civic activities is 

a fundamental right; 

Whereas the United States Government reprogrammed and 

withheld some assistance to Egypt in August 2017 due 

in part to the inability to certify, as required by ConVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:47 Mar 23, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR450.IS SR450

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•SRES 450 IS 

gress, ‘‘that Egypt is advancing democracy and human 

rights’’; 

Whereas the Department of State, in an August 23, 2017, 

press briefing, reported that it was ‘‘unable to certify 

that Egypt is advancing democracy and human rights’’; 

Whereas, in January 2018, Department of State Spokesperson Heather Nauert affirmed that the United States 

supports ‘‘free and fair elections’’ in Egypt and said, 

‘‘We support a timely and credible electoral process and 

believe it needs to include the opportunity for citizens to 

participate freely in Egyptian elections. We believe that 

that should include addressing restrictions on freedom of 

association, peaceful assembly, and also expression.’’; 

Whereas Secretary of State Rex Tillerson visited Egypt on 

February 12, 2018, and stated during a joint press availability with Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, 

‘‘With the presidential elections planned for the end of 

March, the United States, as it does in all countries, supports a transparent and credible electoral process, and all 

citizens being given the right and the opportunity to participate freely and fairly.’’; 

Whereas President of Egypt Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, in a televised interview on September 16, 2016, with CBS 

Evening News, said, ‘‘We uphold the principles of respecting people, of honoring their rights.’’; 

Whereas President el-Sisi has asserted his commitment to 

term limits and free and fair elections over the years, 

stating in a CNBC interview on November 6, 2017, 

‘‘There is no president who will sit in the chair without 

the will of the Egyptian people . . . the one that is in 

the president’s seat will not be able to stay after the term 


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allowed by the law and the constitution. And what determines this will be the vote of the Egyptian people.’’; 

Whereas all credible opposition candidates in Egypt’s 2018 

presidential election faced pressure, harassment, or arrest 

and subsequently withdrew their candidacies; 

Whereas several prominent Egyptian opposition politicians released a statement on January 28, 2018, calling for 

Egyptians ‘‘to boycott these elections . . . not only for 

the absence of the idea of electoral competition, but also 

because [it] is an obvious first step toward changing the 

Constitution, removing the limit on presidential terms 

and eliminating all chances of a peaceful transfer of 

power’’; 

Whereas, in the same statement, these political figures went 

on to note that ‘‘the security and administrative practices 

taken by the current system [are intended] to prevent 

any fair competition in the upcoming elections . . . 

spreading a climate of security fear, media bias . . . and 

then with a tight schedule that does not provide a real 

opportunity for competitors to put themselves and their 

programs forward’’; and 

Whereas the only current opposition candidate, Mr. Moussa 

Mostafa Moussa, is from the Al-Ghad party, which has 

no seats in parliament, and only a few days before declaring his candidacy led a campaign called ‘‘We Support’’ 

calling for el-Sisi’s reelection: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) reasserts its commitment to the United 

3 States-Egypt partnership and to advancing the com4 mon interests of both countries; 


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1 (2) recognizes that Egypt faces legitimate secu2 rity threats and expresses condolences for the loss of 

3 life suffered by the Egyptian people in attacks by 

4 violent extremist organizations; 

5 (3) reaffirms the commitment of the United 

6 States to democracy, human rights, civil liberties, 

7 and the rule of law, including the universal rights of 

8 freedom of assembly, freedom of speech, freedom of 

9 the press, and freedom of association; 

10 (4) expresses support for human rights, civil 

11 liberties, and rule of law in Egypt, and for elections 

12 that are free, fair, and credible; 

13 (5) notes that a lack of progress in these areas 

14 will undermine Egypt’s security and economic sta15 bilization; 

16 (6) supports the people of Egypt, who are enti17 tled to determine their own destiny, including select18 ing their political leadership through a fair and cred19 ible electoral process without fear of or intimidation 

20 by their government; 

21 (7) urges the Government of Egypt to take 

22 meaningful steps to enable free, fair, credible, and 

23 peaceful elections in March 2018 and in the future; 

24 (8) expresses concern regarding the intimida25 tion and detention of credible opposition candidates, 


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1 as well as the restrictive environment for nongovern2 mental organizations and media; 

3 (9) calls on the United States Government, for4 eign governments, and parliaments to speak out in 

5 support of the right of the Egyptian people to free, 

6 fair, and credible elections; and 

7 (10) encourages the President to appoint an 

8 Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Af9 fairs and a United States Ambassador to Egypt to 

10 bolster diplomatic engagement with the Government 

11 of Egypt, electoral stakeholders, and civil society as 

12 well as consistently raise issues of human rights, 

13 rule of law, and governance. 

Æ 


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