President Obama spoke with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak by phone Tuesday night and said he was assured the beleaguered foreign leader understands that political change is needed in Egypt "now."
Mubarak, who has been besieged with calls for his resignation by demonstrators paralyzing Cairo and other major cities, "recognizes that the status quo is not sustainable, change must take place," Obama said after their talk.
"An orderly transition must be meaningful, must be peaceful, and it must begin now," Obama said, promising that the United States stood ready to provide aid in the aftermath of the unrest.
The economy of Egypt has ground to a halt amid nationwide protests calling for an end to Mubarak's 30 years at the helm of a corrupt and authoritarian regime.
In a nationally televised speech just before the call from the White House, Mubarak vowed to serve out his current term as president but said he wouldn't seek reelection in the autumn.
Obama spoke with Mubarak for about half an hour, said National Security Council spokesman Tommy Vietor.
Obama praised the Egyptian army for its "professionalism and patriotism" in providing security on the fringes of the protests without interfering with the peaceful expressions of opposition.
In remarks that seemed tailored to encourage Mubarak to hand over power now rather than risk further confrontation, Obama said that "all of us who are privileged to serve in positions of political power do so at the will of our people." He pointed to "moments of transformation" throughout thousands of years of Egyptian history and said the Egyptian people were making clear that "this is one of those moments, this is one of those times."
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