New Egyptian General Has Ties to U.S.

Obama administration believes country will keep strong ties with America, downplays weekend shakeup.

Egypt's new top military officer is a known commodity in Washington who has long-standing ties to the U.S., Obama administration officials said Monday, playing down the impact of the previous day's power shake-up in Egypt.

U.S. military contacts with Gen. Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, who was appointed defense minister on Sunday, date back more than 30 years to a U.S. infantry basic training course he took at Fort Benning in Georgia in 1981, officials said. He has more recently met with senior U.S. officials including President Barack Obama's top counter-terrorism adviser. U.S. officials expressed confidence that Gen. Sissi will maintain close ties with the U.S., which provides Egypt with $1.3 billion a year in military aid, and uphold Egypt's peace deal with Israel.