Its likely that the "foreign dignitaries" either paid for the work already (in exchange for access to research material) or by sponsoring museum tours on these or other objects.

The majority of digs are done (paid for) by foreign universities, with oversight and eventual ownership of the items by the Museum of Cairo. Most foreign digs that I know of are paused, and have been since 2011/2012 - the ousting of Mubarak. The "season" for excavation limited, and a disruption of a few years was enough for a heavy uptick in looting.

A lot of important (but less newsworthy) sites are now bare - funding for security is not limitless, and without even annual oversight very hard to maintain. Sites of greater value ($ value) are more closely guarded, and perhaps even less likely to be looted if the Egyptians are leading the dig.

I have no direct sources (and haven't looked), I've only heard secondhand from my wife who works in a related field.