Sisi praises Arab support for Egypt
CAIRO, July 30, (Agencies): Egyptian President Abdulfattah el-Sisi on Sunday praised the support of the Arab “brothers” during the hard times in recent years, terming their stands “historical” and the main reasons for the stability of the Egyptian state.
El-Sisi, at the conclusion of the 6th National youth conference, said the support of the “Arab brothers” was a major cause of the success of events in Egypt on July 3, 2013, noting that they have supported the country’s energy sector for 20 months, “without any price”.
On the level of foreign relations, President el-Sisi stressed that Egypt has a firm policy of not interfering in other countries’ affairs. He assured that Egypt has a firm position, which is the unity of countries but would not accept militias and armed groups on its territory, noting that Egypt’s position towards the Syrian crisis was “positive and appreciated.”
With regard to the Libyan crisis, President el-Sisi pointed that Egypt supports the Libyan army and the unity of the country, and elections must be held “as soon as possible,” thus paving way for a better and stronger country.
Internally, the Egyptian President stressed that the conditions in Egypt over the past four years were positive and constantly improving, including the security situation. The security situation in Sinai has improved and the Egyptian army and police were cracking down on outlaws, the President stated.
President el-Sisi assured that Egypt will achieve self-sufficiency and surplus in natural
gas by June 30, 2020.
Egypt cautioned on Sunday against the fallout of the existing situation in the Middle East, especially non-resumption of peace negotiations based on a two-state solution.
The warning was given by Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shukry during a meeting with visiting UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Nickolay Mladenov on the latest Palestinian situation, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
Shukry called on the international community to live up to its due role in maintaining the UNRWA’s humanitarian activities. He lashed out at the recent Israeli practices against the historical and legal rights of the Palestinian people, the latest of which is the “nation-state of Jewish people” law. He reiterated his country’s unwavering support for the Palestinian people’s legitimate rights, primarily an independent Palestinian state with Eastern Jerusalem as its capital.
On his part, Mladenov elaborated on the humanitarian situation in the occupied Palestinian territories and the outcomes of his contacts and efforts to rally up backing for the UNRWA. He also pointed to ongoing UN efforts to reach a ceasefire and launch reconstruction projects. The UN envoy spoke highly of Egypt’s role in pushing forward the inter-Palestinian reconciliation.
Egypt’s president zealously defended his economic policies on Sunday, saying he was left with no choice but to embrace painful austerity measures to revive an economy mauled by years of political turmoil and violence.
El-Sisi was speaking at a youth conference a day after he expressed his displeasure over recent online postings urging him to step down over the economy. He said he was “upset” over the posts, which he said were inappropriate.
The #Sisi_leave hashtag surfaced this summer following steep price hikes for fuel, drinking water and electricity as part of austerity measures designed to overhaul the economy, still recovering from years of turmoil following the 2011 popular uprising.
“They have pushed us into being a nation of poverty, a nation of neediness, but when I begin working toward getting us out of this, I find the hashtag #Sisi — leave,” he said. “Should I have been upset or not? I was upset. I was upset.”
El-Sisi was first elected in 2014, a year after, as defense minister, he led the military’s ouster of Mohammed Morsi, an Islamist who was freely elected but whose one year in office proved divisive. He has since taking office launched multibillion-dollar infrastructure, development and housing projects that he says will transform the country of some 96 million people.
He has also overseen the largest crackdown on dissent in Egypt’s recent history, jailing thousands of Islamists as well as some secular pro-democracy activists, and rolling back many of the freedoms won following the 2011 uprising that toppled longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak.
In March, el-Sisi won a second, four-year term after running virtually unopposed.
The economic reform program has won el-Sisi lavish praise from Cairo’s western backers and bankers and showed him as a leader who was prepared to adopt painful measures, like lifting state subsidies on basic items, regardless of the political cost, something his predecessors had not been able to do for fear of unrest or losing power. El-Sisi’s policies, however, have made more difficult the plight of a majority of Egyptians who are now forced to cope with steep hikes in the price of everything from utilities and fuel to food and transportation.
El-Sisi has in the past told Egyptians not to listen to anyone but him and repeated that he would only listen to viewpoints different from his if they are based on thorough research. In his latest remarks, he repeated his frequent assertions about unnamed parties tirelessly working to undermine and destabilize the country.
Egypt, he warned Sunday, would not survive another “revolutionary” phase like that of 2011.
“Everything is linked to stability and security. I want us to develop an acute fear of instability,” he said.
Addressing the same youth conference Sunday, el-Sisi warned that economic reform was open-ended and that he intended to continue down the same route. “I will press on because I don’t have another path,” declared the general-turned-president who routinely calls on Egyptians to endure hardships for the sake of their country and declares that only God will judge his actions.
With a touch of populism, el-Sisi said Sunday he was prepared to join Egyptian youths and go out to clean the streets. On Saturday, he said he was prepared to eat one meal a day for the rest of his life if that would help Egypt be strong and prosperous.
Seeking to assure Egyptians that his policies would soon bear fruit, he said Egypt will by June 2020 have a surplus of natural gas, complete a network of roads crisscrossing the country, finish the first phase of construction of nearly a dozen new cities and overhaul the railway network.
Along with the economic challenges, Egypt also faces an insurgency by Islamic militants in northern Sinai. El-Sisi said Sunday his security forces have made significant progress in the fight against insurgents but warned that future terror attacks could not be ruled out.
Along with battling militants in the peninsula bordering Gaza and Israel, security forces also struggle to secure the porous borders with neighboring Libya and Sudan, used by militants to smuggle weapons and fighters into Egypt and for cross-border attacks. On Sunday, he said security forces have over the past 18 months intercepted or destroyed some 2,000 vehicles carrying arms, ammunition or militants.