State Dept Will Not 'Blame Any One Side' In Egypt Conflict

Q: “Why can’t it be argued that President Morsi, by issuing this decree, essentially inflamed a situation that was already tense because the Coptic Christian minority, for one, didn’t feel that its interests were being respected, that there were some legitimate objections being raised by those in the secular opposition that they were hoping that they could work out? Why can’t the U.S. blame President Morsi for the situation now taking place outside the palace?

State Department Deputy Spokesman Mark Toner: “Well, Rosalind, I don’t think it makes any sense right now to blame any one side, but to – rather to urge all sides to come together to talk about the issues at stake here, to talk about this constitutional draft, and to adhere to a process, as I said, that allows all Egyptians’ voices to be heard.”