Written by David Lerman and Gopal Ratnam | From Bloomberg

The U.S. is resuming delivery of Apache attack helicopters to Egypt and releasing half of the $1.3 billion a year in military aid that was halted last year.

President Barack Obama decided to provide 10 helicopters to help fight terrorism in the Sinai Peninsula, U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel told his Egyptian counterpart in a telephone call April 22, according to Rear Admiral John Kirby, a Pentagon spokesman.

The assistance was suspended after the military led the ouster of Egypt’s democratically elected president, Mohamed Mursi in July. Secretary of State John Kerry told U.S. lawmakers that Egypt is abiding by its peace treaty with Israel and is combating terrorism. Kerry stopped short of verifying that Egypt is moving toward democracy, a third step required for some of the U.S. aid to flow.

“He is certifying to Congress that Egypt is sustaining the strategic relationship with the United States,” Jen Psaki, a State Department spokeswoman, said in a statement. “He urged Egypt to follow through on its commitment to transition to democracy -– including by conducting free, fair, and transparent elections.”

Kerry met yesterday in Washington with Egypt’s intelligence chief, Mohamed Farid El-Tohamy, and is scheduled to meet on April 29 with Egyptian Foreign Minister Nabil Fahmy, the highest-ranking Egyptian official to visit the U.S. capital since July. The announcement on the helicopters came a month before the Arab world’s most populous country holds presidential elections.

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