Egypt's army ran the revolution's transitional phase with all impartiality and integrity until power was transferred on time to a civil, elected president, Minister of Defence and Military Production Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said on Thursday.

The armed forces are racing against time to regain their combat efficiency, a process which is running at unprecedented rates, First Lieutenant General al-Sisi said during a speech after inspecting an air defence formation.

The minister put emphasis on maintaining the efficiency of the armed forces and their weapons and equipment as well as making use of scientific and research capabilities in light of the current economic status, the official Facebook page of the army spokesman reported al-Sisi as saying.