marc lynch, director of the middle east studies program at george washington university. he also writes a blog about the middle east for foreignpolicy.com. and hisham melhem, washington bureau chief for al arabiya tv, an arab language satellite news channel. thank you all for being here. there's so many questions at this stage. as we watch events unfold in egypt. let me start with you, hisham what contacts do we know are there going on right now between washington and cairo? >> there are contacts on the highest levels, particularly with the new deputy of pew barack and with the military. i would like to listen the conversations between robert gates and the minister. >> woodruff: the defense secretary. >> exactly, yeah. souliman and the others are very well-known to policymakers hear in washington. they've been involved in dealing with them on security issues, arab israeli conflict, combatting terrorism. so they know each other extremely well. and the united states can kin fluence the egyptian army. the egyptian army knows that they cannot survive without continuing that k