Ashraf AboArafe
Ambassador Ahmed Abu Zeid, the official spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated that the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sameh Shoukry, received on March 27 a delegation of members of the Homeland Security Committee of the US House of Representatives, headed by Representative August Pfluger, whose visit to Egypt comes within the framework of a regional tour in the region.
Ambassador Abu Zeid explained that the Minister of Foreign Affairs welcomed the delegation’s visit to Cairo, noting the multiplicity of areas of bilateral relations between the two countries, and the importance of continuing work to strengthen the strategic partnership between the two sides in all its military and economic aspects. Minister Shukry noted Egypt’s efforts to support the achievement of security and stability in the region, and to overcome the challenges it has suffered for many years, such as terrorism, the threat to the concept of the national state, and the spread of armed conflicts in the region, in addition to economic and development challenges. He also reviewed Egypt’s vision and the comprehensive strategy it has adopted to combat terrorism that takes into account all security, economic, social, cultural, educational and development dimensions with the aim of working to uproot terrorism from its roots, limit the spread of extremist thought and develop religious discourse.
The Foreign Ministry spokesman added that the meeting discussed developments in the crisis in Gaza, where the Foreign Minister stressed the importance of an immediate and comprehensive ceasefire, allowing humanitarian aid to enter in a sustainable manner and in quantities that meet the needs of the Palestinians, given the ongoing humanitarian catastrophe in the Strip, and implementing Security Council Resolution No. 2720. , which gave the United Nations a mandate to facilitate the entry of aid into Gaza.
Minister Shukri also expressed his aspiration for the American side to resume its financial contribution to UNRWA, given its impact on Palestinian refugees in general in Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon, stressing Egypt’s rejection of any military operation in the Palestinian city of Rafah, as this would represent a humanitarian catastrophe that would cause more Of 1.4 million displaced people.
For their part, the members of the American delegation were keen to emphasize the centrality of Egyptian-American relations, expressing their appreciation for the role played by Egypt in supporting regional peace and security and restoring stability to the region, and their full support for the Egyptian efforts aimed at reaching a permanent ceasefire agreement in Gaza. The delegation also stressed that the main goal of its visit to Egypt is to strengthen American-Egyptian relations and remove any obstacles that prevent them from developing the broadest horizons in all fields.
