U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said here Tuesday that she hoped the U.S.-Egypt spar over operations of the non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in the Middle East country would be resolved "very soon."

"We are engaged in very intensive discussions with the Egyptian government about finding a solution," Clinton said at a Senate hearing on the State Department's proposed budget.

"We've had a lot of very tough conversations and I think we're moving toward a resolution," she said.

Clinton declined to give more details about the issue, but said "we're hoping to resolve this very soon."

The United States and Egypt have been at odds over the issue since the end of last year when Egyptian police and prosecutors searched 17 local and foreign groups' offices in the country over suspected illicit funding activities.

As the U.S.-based International Republican Institute and the National Democratic Institute were among the searched groups, Washington voiced deep concern over these moves and even threatened to cut its military aid to Egypt.

However, the Egyptian authorities have been defending their actions, insisting that no violations of laws occurred in these investigations.

Earlier this month, the Egyptian authorities filed charges against dozens of NGO activists, including 19 Americans.