EGYPT REQUESTS ADDITIONAL WEAPONS

[IMRA: El Arish is around 47 kilometers from Rafah. Proposals for a naval
base in the demilitarized Sinai are part of plans to reward Egypt for
saying it will finally make an effort to stop smuggling of weapons from
Egypt to the Palestinians by ending the demilitarization of Sinai. The
Egyptian Sinai's demilitarization was a necessary condition for Israel's
withdrawal from Sinai in the Egypt-Israel treaty. Egypt has been pressing
for years to remove international observers from the area.]

WASHINGTON [MENL] -- Egypt has requested additional weapons and funding from
the United States.

A delegation of four Egyptian generals briefed U.S. officials and Congress
on Cairo's military needs over the next few years. Last week, the Egyptian
Defense Ministry delegation visited the National Security Council, Defense
Department and Capitol Hill.

"There is a concern in Cairo that the Bush administration will block or
reduce arms shipments to Egypt," an official said. "The delegation wanted to
highlight Egypt's importance to U.S. strategy in the Middle East."

Officials said the delegation sought to assuage U.S. concerns over an
Egyptian military buildup, including plans to deploy 5,000 troops in eastern
Sinai along the border with Israel. They said Egypt has discussed U.S.
funding for the construction of a naval port in El Arish. The administration
has requested $1.3 billion in military aid for Cairo in fiscal 2006.
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