Azerbaijan, Baku, Feb. 11 /Trend, A.Tagiyeva/
The main problem of the Egyptian society is slow rate of modernization, the head the Federation Council's foreign policy committee, Mikhail Margelov said in an exclusive interview to Rusia Al-Yaum TV channel in Arabic.
"The society is largely archaicly and traditionally based on family, clan ties, on the traditional structure, which inherited from the past, and it slows down the rate of modernization in Egypt," Margelov said.
Large-scale anti-governmental protests are ongoing in Egypt. Thousands of people in different cities across the country have taken to the streets, demanding President Hosni Mubarak's resignation and the dissolution of parliament. The unrests in the country have killed at least 300 people and have injured over 4,000.
Mubarak made a statement and promised that he would not run for a sixth term as president in the upcoming September elections.
Several opposition leaders were not satisfied with promises of the president and continue to demand his immediate resignation.
Last night, Mubarak stated that he transfers parts of his powers to Vice-President Suleiman, but is not going to resign. Mubarak said he will remain as head of the state until the elections in September.
According to Margelov, this is a society that largely froze in its social development.
"If to bring a model like European democracy to such an archaic society, not to allow this society to pass through all stages of modernization, then we will see the results that are unlikely to please our European or American partners," he said
Therefore, from the beginning of the crisis in Egypt, many tried to cool those hot heads who called for the immediate withdrawal of President Mubarak, the immediate holding of elections, said the senator.
"I think that as now transition period has been defined, now it is time for all political forces to be structured in political parties and movements - it is much more civilized way of solving problems," said Margelov.
According to him, Egypt can and should only go in one way - through a national consensus.
"Without a political dialogue, a political vacuum will appear, and the vacuum is always filled with the forces of extremism and radicalism," he said.