US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has declined to comment on the decision by Egypt's biggest political force, the Muslim Brotherhood, to field a candidate in the presidential election, saying that Washington will follow the presidential vote closely and will watch all the political forces in the country.
She added that Washington will monitor actions by Egyptian politicians and hold them "accountable."
"We're going to watch what the political actors in Egypt do. We're going to watch their commitment to the rights and the dignity of every Egyptian," Clinton told reporters in Istanbul following a meeting of the "Friends of Syria" group.
"We will watch what all the political actors do and hold them accountable for their actions," she added.
She urged political actors in Egypt not to discriminate against women, minorities or political opponents.
"We want to see Egypt move forward in a democratic transition, and what that means is you do not and cannot discriminate against religious minorities, women, political opponents," said Clinton, who did not mention the Brotherhood by name.
On Saturday, the Brotherhood, in a surprising reversal of an earlier pledge to stay out of the race, announced that they chose Shater to contest the upcoming presidential vote.
The Brotherhood already controls about half the seats in Parliament. Its increasing grip on power has fueled concerns among liberals and secularists over its intentions and whether it aims to govern alone, controling both the Parliament and the presidency.
"There has to be a process starting in an election that lays down certain principles that will be followed by whoever wins the election. That is what we hope for the Egyptian people," Clinton continued.
She added that she "really" hoped the Egyptian people got what they staged their uprising for, "which is the kind of open, inclusive, pluralistic democracy that really respects the rights and dignity of every single Egyptian."
