A government source told the French Press Agency that advanced discussions are taking place with Egypt regarding the sale of 30 new French Rafale aircraft, and the results may be announced soon, without giving further details.
This came after the French investigative website Disclose revealed that a deal was concluded between Cairo and Paris on April 26, worth 3.95 billion euros (4.75 billion dollars) to buy 30 Rafale fighters, in addition to a number of missiles.
There was no immediate comment from Cairo regarding what the French government source mentioned, or what the investigative website reported regarding the deal to buy fighters and missiles from Paris.
The site revealed that this deal is supposed to be funded by a loan from French banking institutions with a French government guarantee.
Disclose highlighted that the secrecy surrounding the process came at the request of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi.
According to the site, which cited Egyptian government documents detailing the terms of the contract, Egypt obtained an 85% French guarantee loan to finance these purchases.
An Egyptian delegation was scheduled to sign the agreement in Paris on Monday, in initials.
Cairo, an important customer for the French arms industry, was the first foreign country to buy Rafale fighters in 2015. This contract under which it obtained 24 aircraft from Dassault, an aircraft manufacturer, included the option for Egypt to acquire another 12 fighters from Rafale model but did not request it.
Macron awarded Sisi last year the Legion of Honor, which sparked angry reactions from human rights defenders (communication sites)
Last December, French President Emmanuel Macron received Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and awarded him the Legion of Honor.
This sparked angry reactions on social media, as NGOs accuse the Egyptian authorities of violating human rights.
Macron refrained from exerting great pressure on Egypt after Sisi's rise to power in 2015 coincided with an increase in repression against all forms of Islamist or liberal opposition.
"I will not make these differences a condition for our cooperation in the defense field, as in the economic field," the French president said.
The two countries show convergence on other regional security issues, such as disputes with Turkey in the eastern Mediterranean or the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.
On the other hand, France is one of the countries that asked Egypt to stop using its anti-terrorism legislation to close the mouths of opponents.
Human rights organizations accuse Egypt of using weapons against civilians, especially to suppress the opposition and activists, but Cairo denies these accusations.
The concern expressed by Emmanuel Macron about the human rights situation in Egypt during a joint press conference with his counterpart in January 2019 ended the rapprochement between France and Egypt, which have not concluded any new contracts since then, according to what Representative Jacques Meyer wrote in November / Last November in a report on the Department of Arms Exports.