US Senator John McCain to meet Egyptian president

US Senator John McCain has arrived in Cairo on Wednesday for a three-day visit to meet with Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi on Thursday and other Egyptian officials. McCain, who arrived on Tuesday, is scheduled to hold talks with Essam Al-Haddad, the president's assistant for foreign affairs, along with a number of opposition figures and parliament members, Egyptian state-run Middle East News Agency (MENA) reported. Talks will primarily focus on Egypt's transition to democracy as well as current developments in the region, namely the ongoing crisis in Syria and the Palestinian issue. Last November, McCain called on the Obama administration to withhold financial aid from Egypt unless Morsi responded to opposition demands and rescind a controversial decree that was later reversed. Second to Israel, the United States provides more than $1.9 billion in financial aid annually to Egypt, an amount which is mostly allocated to the Egyptian military. From Ahramonline