The United States will relieve up to US$1 billion of Egypt's debt, US President Obama announced today. "We don't want a democratic Egypt to be saddled with debt," he said during his live address from the State Department. Obama also unveiled plans to provide$1billion in loans via enterprise funds based on the model established after the fall of Communism in Eastern Europe. He added that the US has asked the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund to present a plan at next week's G8 summit aimed at stabilising the economies of Egypt and Tunisia. He also announced a new program of economic aid starting with Egypt and Tunisia, including helping new governments recover assets lost to corruption. "We will help newly democratic governments recover assets that were stolen," he said in a major speech on the Middle East and North Africa.