VIENNA (dpa-AFX) - The European Union has agreed to send an observer mission to monitor the Egyptian presidential elections scheduled to be held on May 26-27, it was announced Friday.
A statement issued by the European bloc said the agreement was reached during the visit of EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton to Egypt on Thursday.
During her visit, Ashton held talks with interim President Adly Mansour, interim Foreign Minister Nabil Fahmy, the former President of the Constitutional Drafting Committee Amr Moussa, Field Marshal Abdel Fatah al-Sissi as well as the Secretary General of the League of Arab States Nabil El Arabi.
'In the course of her discussions, the High Representative finalized an agreement on the Election Observation Mission for the forthcoming Presidential elections and discussed a number of regional issues, including the Middle East Peace Process and Syria,' the press release said.
In her talks with the Egyptian leadership, Ashton also discussed the economic challenges and the potential for EU engagement with Egypt as well as existing commitments.
'The High Representative also raised with all interlocutors the growing concerns about the death penalty notices as well as the detention of journalists and activists,' the press release added.
Egypt has been undergoing a democratic transition following the toppling of President Hosni Mubarak three years ago in the wake of mass protests against his rule in the North African nation. In the elections that followed Mubarak's ouster, Mohamed Morsi, a leader of Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party, was elected as Egypt's first civilian and freely-elected President in June 2012.
But in July 2013, renewed protests in which dozens of people were killed and wounded led to the Egyptian military deposing President Morsi. The deposed president's supporters have since been rallying against his overthrow and holding demonstrations, further plunging the country into a political turmoil.
This prompted the interim administration to crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood. Some of the group's senior leaders have since been detained on suspicion of inciting violence and murder.
It is estimated that more than 1,000 people, mostly Brotherhood supporters, were killed in the violent protests and the subsequent security crackdown. Moreover, more than 1200 supporters are on trial on charges related to events in August 2013 after the Government of President Mohamed Morsi was ousted.
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