The US government is willing to “consider” unfreezing aid to Egypt that had put on hold last month, President Donald Trump told the press on Wednesday, according to Reuters. The US had decided last month to cut or withhold some USD 290 mn in civilian and military aid to Egypt for “failure to make progress on respecting human rights and democratic norms.” Word in the halls of power in both countries is that the move had more to do with Cairo’s ties to North Korea than it did with human rights, and Trump’s statement came less than one week after Cairo effectively cut ties with Pyongyang.

…What’s more, Egypt will soon receive some USD 13 mn from the US government under a USD 700 mn humanitarian aid package meant to help Syrian refugees, the State Department said in a statement picked up by Reuters.

The developments in the aid story comes despite a scathing US State Department memothat says human rights conditions in Egypt are “deteriorating” and accuses the country of “failing to protect free speech and its minorities, investigate abuses by its forces, or grant US monitors access to the conflict-ridden Sinai Peninsula.” The report was submitted to Congress in August but never publicly released, according to the Associated Press.

The State Department report appears not to have dampened talks between Trump and President Abdel Fattah El Sisi last Wednesday. On the sidelines of the annual UN General Assembly gathering in New York. Regional issues — including a glimmer of hope for peace to our east after Egypt mediated between Hamas and Fatah — were high on the agenda, according to a statement from the International Cooperation Ministry.

El Sisi also addressed world leaders at the UN’s High Level Event on Libya, declaring the 2015 peace agreement that set up the Government of National Accord as the “only acceptable framework” to end the conflict. The president stressed the importance of reaching resolution before Libya’s transitional phase officially expires on 17 December. El Sisi also asked the international community to support the Cairo-backed Libyan National Army. You can read the full address here in English (pdf) and Arabic.