The Presidency
Today, President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi participated in the first Egyptian-European summit held at the European Council headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. The President chaired the Egyptian delegation participating in the summit, which included Minister of Foreign Affairs, Emigration and Egyptian Expatriates Dr. Badr Abdel-Atty, Minister of Planning, Economic Development and International Cooperation Dr. Rania A. Al-Mashaat, and Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade Minister Hassan El Khatib. The European side was chaired by President of the European Council António Costa and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen.
The Spokesman for the Presidency, Ambassador Mohamed El-Shennawy, said the president of the European Council and the president of the European Commission received the President upon his arrival at the European Council headquarters, where commemorative photos were taken.
A bilateral meeting was then held between the President and European officials, in the attendance of the Egyptian foreign minister, followed by the signing of a number of joint agreements. The Egyptian-European summit began with welcoming remarks from the president of the European Council and the president of the European Commission.
In his opening remarks, President El-Sisi expressed his deep gratitude for the warm reception and emphasized that the summit was an embodiment of the shared commitment to strengthening the comprehensive strategic partnership between Egypt and the European Union. The President looked forward to exploring ways to deepen cooperation in key areas, including investment, sustainable development, energy, security, education, innovation, and migration.
The President emphasized that Egypt is a reliable partner of the European Union, represents a strategic depth for it, and possesses the capabilities that qualify it to be an effective industrial and technological partner.
In his speech, the President also addressed transnational challenges, such as illegal immigration, the deteriorating humanitarian situation, terrorism, and cyberattacks. The President emphasized that Egypt remains a responsible party in confronting these challenges, and that it always seeks to consolidate peace and stability, and achieve prosperity in the region.
This was demonstrated by hosting the Sharm el-Sheikh peace summit to end the war in the Gaza Strip, in addition to Egypt’s continued efforts to mediate to resolve regional conflicts. The President looked forward to holding constructive discussions during the summit.
The summit’s activities included discussions on a number of different geopolitical issues, including developments in the Gaza Strip, the crises in Libya, Sudan, Syria and the Horn of Africa, in addition to the Iranian nuclear file, the war in Ukraine, Yemen, and the Red Sea, as well as the topics of migration and strengthening the strategic partnership between Egypt and the European Union, economic and investment aspects, among other topics that fall within the axes of the comprehensive strategic partnership agreement between Egypt and the European Union, as the two sides reviewed their positions on each of these issues.
Concluding the Egyptian-European summit, a joint press conference was held for President El-Sisi, the president of the European Council, and the president of the European Commission, during which the President delivered a speech.
