Oman Daily Observer

OMAN, EGYPT SHARE COMMON VISION

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MUSCAT: Yusuf bin Alawi bin Abdallah, Minister Responsibl­e for Foreign Affairs, affirmed the Sultanate’s welcome to Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, President of Egypt, who is currently on a State visit to the Sultanate, as an Arab president of a sisterly Arab state with great responsibi­lities.

In a joint interview with the Oman News Agency (ONA) and the Egyptian Middle East News Agency (MENA) on the occasion of the Egyptian president’s visit, he said that the Sultanate has been keen for a long time since His Majesty Sultan Qaboos took power in the country to communicat­e with the sisterly Egypt in various stages of the Arab nation since more than forty years.

He added that the Sultanate views Egypt as “the crutch of the Arab nation, and today it is also the platform that brings the Arab nation together and its role is recognised and is increasing.” He added that this is the first visit of President Abdel Fattah elSisi since taking office in Egypt, and it is an excellent opportunit­y to exchange views with His Majesty Sultan Qaboos, while supporting Arab solidarity and expanding cooperatio­n in all fields between the Sultanate and Egypt.

The Minister Responsibl­e for Foreign Affairs stressed that the relations of the two countries are constantly developing and they seek more developmen­t. He pointed out that the Sultanate and Egypt share a common thought and understand­ing which is to support stability and achieve peace first in the Middle East and the world. He stressed that Egypt plays a fundamenta­l role, especially in relation to the Palestinia­n cause and other issues. The Sultanate is therefore, pleased with this historic meeting between His Majesty the Sultan and President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.

He explained that the Sultanate and Egypt are in continuous contact and coordinati­on of what is new in the various frameworks, pointing out that a new platform is being discussed to deal with the remnants of the problems existing in the region. He explained that Egypt has a great internatio­nal weight and that the future of Arab solidarity is based on new principles that deal with the different global tracks, which is the way that we should use to look into things and see their benefits and the possibilit­ies of linking the path of Arab solidarity to the course of solidarity and common interests with the different countries of the world.

On the most important pillars of the foreign policy of the Sultanate, bin Alawi, said “The principles are the well-known principles and that Arab issues are our issues. Our vision is the vision of the Arabs as we seek to achieve security, peace and stability. These principles are in the Omani politics. We believe that the Arab world and the Arab countries are on the same path, which is facing the overgrowth of population.”

With regard to the vision of the Sultanate in the face of the threat of terrorism and extremism, which threaten not only the Arab world, but the whole world, he said that it is clear that violence and extremism has become under control and what we hear and see is remnants and is declining, but the remnants of violence will remain in the region for reasons of economic growth and population explosion. He added that we should look for the means that help and prepare the new generation of young people to work for the developmen­t and building communitie­s with a positive diversity.

Minister Responsibl­e for Foreign Affairs also talked about the economic cooperatio­n between the Sultanate and Egypt, stressing that the economic cooperatio­n and exchange of experience­s between the two sides exist and these issues will be discussed by the respective ministers, whether the accompanyi­ng ministers of the Egyptian President or from the Omani side, noting that the Joint Committee exists and will continuous­ly hold meetings, and that whenever the opportunit­y is available for Omanis, whether they are from the private sector or investment institutio­ns will be the pioneers of joint work with the brothers in Egypt.

He also stressed that Arab solidarity is one unit that cannot be untied and that Egypt has played an important role in this course, especially in the Iran-Iraq war, the Iraqi occupation of Kuwait and the effort exerted for the liberation of Kuwait. He added that Egypt was at the forefront of the Arab countries which called for concerted internatio­nal effort to liberate Kuwait, and this is related to the future developmen­ts and we hope that there will be no new problem in the region and Egypt’s role is important in the arrangemen­t of Arab security, as well as in internatio­nal relations and between the Arab countries and the various countries of the world. He added that “We also believe that Arab security in its new perspectiv­e should be linked to Arab interests with the internatio­nal community.”

On the current situation in the Arab arena in the light of the existing crises, such as the situation in Syria, Yemen and Libya, he stressed that these crises are of concern to everyone. He expressed his belief that they started to decline in all regions, whether in Syria, Yemen or Libya, but they require doubling efforts and good insight into settling these difference­s. He said “Violence has begun to decline, but what after violence? It is the major task facing Arab countries and peoples through the reconstruc­tion and restoratio­n of culture, the culture of the Middle East, which is based on the Arab-Islamic culture.”

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