Egypt, already struggling with high foreign debt levels, has been hit hard by the war in the neighboring Gaza Strip, which threatens to disrupt the North African nation’s tourism sector, its natural gas imports, and recent attacks on Red Sea ships.
Cairo’s $3 billion loan program agreed with the IMF in December 2022 faltered after the North African nation failed to let its currency float freely or make progress on the sale of state assets.
The IMF delayed disbursements of about $700 million expected in 2023, but in December said it was in talks to expand the $3 billion program given economic risk from the Israel-Gaza war.
The IMF had no immediate comment on whether Egyptian authorities would also meet with the fund’s officials during their visit to Washington.
The Treasury said Yellen would meet with Egyptian Finance Minister Mohamed Maait; Rania Al-Mashat, minister of international cooperation and top central banker Hassan Abdalla.
The meeting comes as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken visits the Middle East as part of a fresh push to prevent the Gaza conflict from growing into a regional conflagration.
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