Cairo - Egyptian President Hosny Mubarak met Sunday with a delegation of three US congressmen to discuss political reform in Egypt. Speaking at a press conference following the talks, the head of the delegation US congressman David Price said: "We had a long discussion about a number of areas of mutual interest. We are friends of Egypt, and our country is a friend and partner of Egypt."
The congressmen are visiting Egypt, Lebanon, Israel and Palestinian territories, for discussions with other parliament members in the region.
According to reports, the congressmen are scheduled to meet with a group of Egyptian parliamentarians that include a member of the banned Muslim Brotherhood, an Islamic group that represents Egypt's strongest opposition group.
Some of the leading members of the group are officialy charged with financing insurgency.
Suleiman Awwad, presidential spokesman, criticized on Sunday the notion that the congressmen's meeting will include a Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated deputy.
Awwad said that the US does not distinguish between banned groups elsewhere citing its policies with Palestinian militant Hamas as proof.
"This contradicts the stance and the priorities of the United States," he added.
