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Morsi’s victory in Egyptian election does not imply radical Islamic path

Morsi has secular presidential obligations although the gradual shift to Sharia and the building of an Islamic state

MOSCOW, June 24 (Itar-Tass) —— The victory of Muslim Brotherhood's Mohammed Morsi in the Egyptian presidential election runoff does not mean that Egypt would take the path of radical Islam, Russian Presidential Representative for Africa, Federation Council member Mikhail Margelov told Itar-Tass on Sunday.

“Muslim Brotherhood's Mohammed Morsi won the election by a small margin. Yet one should not suggest that the country would take the path of radical Islam now,” he said.

“Morsi has secular presidential obligations although the gradual shift to Sharia and the building of an Islamic state are included in his program,” he said.

“Secondly, generals, who have substantial property and privileges, remain an influential political force in Egypt. Certainly, the Armed Forces are not made entirely of generals, and medium-ranked officers may sympathize with Morsi. However, the military commanders have ways to influence the new president. A new constitution will be elaborated, and the generals will not stay aside of that process,” Margelov said. “The Egyptian president has a sufficient number of important powers now, but who knows what powers he may have under the new constitution.”

Margelov also expects that Egypt “may enter into a new period of destabilization, and under these circumstances the influence of the military on the political situation will naturally grow.” “Disturbances are quite possible. Protests in the country have been on practically since the beginning of the Arab Spring. There are already demonstrations in Cairo on the day of the announcement of the presidential election outcome. There is a rally of Morsi’s supporters on Tahrir Square, and supporters of his main rival, ex-Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq, are rallying in the Nasr neighborhood,” he said.

“President Morsi will also encounter economic problems – the post-revolutionary economy of Egypt is in a bad shape, and the fulfillment of generous social promises will bump into insurmountable difficulties,” he suggested.

According to the Egyptian election authorities, Morsi gained support of 13,230,131 voters (51.73%), while Shafiq’s rating was 48.27% (12,347,380). The gap is smaller than one million votes. The turnout stood at 51.85%.