The Washington Post reports: The European Union’s Catherine Ashton has met with deposed Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi. The Monday night meeting marked the first visit that Morsi has had from an outside official since he was ousted from power in a July 3 coup.

The visit signaled for the first time that Egypt’s military, which is holding Morsi, may be willing to work with him towards a political solution to the country’s ongoing crisis, which has seen waves of violence between security forces and Morsi’s supporters since his ouster.

Last week, prosecutors announced that Morsi was being investigated for allegations of espionage and murder; charges that his supporters in the Muslim Brotherhood have dismissed as politically motivated, but which could carry the death penalty.

Ashton would not go into detail about her two-hour conversation with Morsi on Monday night, but she said Tuesday that the deposed president had access to newspapers and television, and was in good condition.

“He’s well, and we had a friendly and open and very frank discussion,” Ashton said at a brief press conference on Tuesday. She did not say where Morsi, who has been held incommunicado for four weeks, was being held. [Continue reading…]