One of the first targets in Donald Trump’s campaign to crack down on countries trading with North Korea has turned out to be a key US ally in the Middle East — Egypt.

As the Trump administration scrambles to respond to North Korea’s nuclear ambitions, it is trying to coax the country’s smaller trading partners, from Sudan to the Philippines, to ramp up the pressure on Kim Jong Un’s regime. Last week, the Trump administration announced that it would cut $96 million in aid and delay $195 million in military funding to Egypt, citing human rights concerns — and, according to reports, over the country’s robust relationship with North Korea.

Now the Trump administration must take on the difficult task of convincing those countries it’s in their interests to crack down on commerce with North Korea.

One of the largest recipients of US aid, Egypt has also had a longstanding relationship with the isolated regime in Pyongyang, particularly trading in weapons. It’s unclear, though, what aspects of Egypt-North Korea relations the administration is displeased with, and whether it includes commerce not prohibited by sanctions. Egypt makes up a very small part of the value of North Korea’s total trade — but it attracted headlines in 2008 when Orascom, an Egyptian telecom firm, set up the first North Korean 3G network. And Egypt is a well-known buyer of North Korean missiles and other weapons.

In Cairo, the development was met with confusion, and in some quarters, frustration.

“The North Korean-American issue is a conflict between the US and its allies against North Korea — not the whole world against North Korea,” said Gen. Hamdi Bakhit, a member of parliament who sits on the powerful Defense and National Security Committee. “China, for example, has a balanced relationship with both the US and North Korea … America is just fishing for a mistake to pressure Egypt.”

Trump said over the weekend that he was considering cutting off trade with all countries doing business with North Korea. Besides China, which is America’s largest trading partner, that would include many smaller countries who see their economic relationships with North Korea as legitimate and in keeping with their rights as sovereign countries.