Describing the situation in Egypt as "complex and difficult" and having consequences, the White House Monday said it was closely monitoring the situation in the Arab nation and was still to determine whether the ouster of President Mohammed Morsi was indeed a military coup.
Expressing concern over the eruption of violence in Egypt after the Muslim Brotherhood's Morsi was ousted by the military last week, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said the US is "monitoring the situation" in Egypt and will take time to determine the events that happened in the country and how to analyse them.
"We think, it would not be in the best interests of the United States to change the assistance that we provide to Egypt," Carney said when asked if the US was planning on cutting its USD 1.5 billion annual aid to Egypt.
The US is calling for the return to a democratic-elected government, he said.
"The United States remains deeply concerned by the increasing violence across Egypt and by Egypt's dangerous level of political polarisation. We strongly condemn any violence as well as any incitement to violence. We express our condolences to those who have been killed and their families and hope that those who are wounded or have been wounded recover quickly," he said.
"We call on the military to use maximum restraint responding to protestors, just as we urge all those demonstrating to do so peacefully. We also condemn the explicit calls to violence made by the Muslim Brotherhood," Carney said at his daily news conference - the first after last week's dramatic events.
"During this transitional period, Egypt's stability and democratic political order are at stake, and Egypt will not be able to emerge from this crisis unless its people come together to find a non-violent and inclusive path forward. We continue to urge all political, military and religious leaders to prioritise efforts to bridge Egypt's deep divisions," he said.
Carney said the US was not aligned with nor was it supporting any particular political party or group.
"We remain actively engaged with all sides and we are committed to supporting the Egyptian people as they seek to salvage their nascent democracy. But we have been clear that these decisions belong to Egyptians," Carney said.
"Looking forward, we will work with the transitional Egyptian government to promote a quick and responsible return to a sustainable democratically-elected civilian government. But a transitional period must be defined by reconciliation rather than reprisals or rejection of the political process," he said.
"We call on the Egyptian military to avoid arrests targeting specific groups or movements and to avoid restrictions on the media. We also call on all political parties and movements to remain engaged in dialogue and to commit to participating in a political process to hasten the return of full authority to a democratically-elected government," Carney said.
Responding to a question on the current situation in Egypt, he said "this is an incredibly complex and difficult" situation.
"President (Barack) Obama made clear our deep concern about the decision made by the Egyptian armed forces to remove President Morsi from power and to suspend the constitution," Carney said.
"It is also important to acknowledge that tens of millions of Egyptians have legitimate grievances with President Morsi's undemocratic form of government or governance, and they do not believe that this was a coup. Indeed, they were demanding a new government," he said.
"There are significant consequences that go along with this determination, and it is a highly charged issue for millions of Egyptians who have different views about what happened. We are going to take the time necessary to review what has taken place and to monitor efforts by Egyptian authorities to forge an inclusive and democratic way forward," he said.
"And as we do, we will review our requirements under the law, and we will do so consistent with our policy objectives. And we will also, of course, consult with Congress on that," Carney said.
