Ashraf AboArafe
On Monday, February 10, Dr. Badr Abdel Aati, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Immigration, held talks with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the US Department of State in Washington.
Ambassador Tamim Khalaf, the official spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated that the meeting discussed the overall close bilateral relations between the two countries, ways to enhance the strategic partnership that extends for four decades, and support cooperation in various fields to achieve common interests. Minister Abdel Aati expressed his aspiration to work with the new administration to achieve security, stability, and just and comprehensive peace in the region.
The talks touched on the importance of continuing to hold rounds of the Egyptian-American strategic dialogue periodically at the level of the foreign ministers. The meeting also addressed ways to enhance economic, trade, and investment cooperation between the two countries, as the two ministers discussed the ongoing arrangements for Cairo to host the “Egypt’s Economic Future Forum” during the current year in cooperation with the American Chamber of Commerce, which aims to achieve a qualitative leap in trade exchange rates and increase American investments in Egypt.
The official spokesman added that an extensive discussion took place between the two ministers regarding the successive regional developments in Gaza, Syria, Libya, Sudan, the Horn of Africa and the Red Sea. Regarding the Palestinian issue, Minister Abdel-Ati stressed the constants of the Egyptian, Arab and Islamic position on the Palestinian issue and the importance of achieving the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinian people, expressing Egypt’s aspiration to coordinate with the US administration in order to work to achieve the desired just peace in the Middle East in a manner that responds to the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people, most notably their right to establish their independent state on all their national soil. In this context, Minister Abdel-Ati reviewed Egypt’s efforts in implementing the ceasefire agreement in all its three stages and the implementation of humanitarian aid, and stressed the importance of accelerating the start of the early recovery process, removing rubble and rebuilding with the Palestinians in Gaza in light of their adherence to their land and their complete rejection of displacement with full support from the Arab and Islamic worlds and the international community. He also stressed the importance of finding a political horizon that leads to a final settlement of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, in accordance with international legitimacy resolutions, ensuring the establishment of an independent Palestinian state on the lines of June 4, 1967, with East Jerusalem as its capital, in a way that achieves security and stability in the Middle East.
The talks also addressed developments in Sudan, where Minister Abdel Aati stressed Egypt’s position in support of Sudanese state institutions, the need for a ceasefire, and respect for the sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity of Sudan. The talks also addressed developments in Syria, where Minister Abdel Aati stressed Egypt’s full support for the Syrian people, stressing the need to respect the unity and territorial integrity of Syria, and the importance of starting a political process that does not exclude any components of Syrian society, and that Syria be a source of stability in the region.
The talks between the two ministers touched on the issue of Egyptian water security, where the Foreign Minister stressed Egypt’s firm position on the need to reach a legal and binding agreement to operate the dam without infringing on the rights of the downstream countries and achieving the common interests of all parties. The talks also witnessed an exchange of views on a number of other issues of common interest, including developments in Lebanon, Libya, the Horn of Africa, and navigation security in the Red Sea. It was agreed on the need to continue consultation and coordination between Egypt and the United States.
