Al-Sisi, Seehofer agree on boosting security cooperation, strengthen Egyptian capabilities
President, German foreign minister stressed importance of pushing forward Palestinian-Israeli peace process
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi met with German Leader of the Christian Social Union Party and Minister of the Interior Horst Seehofer on Wednesday where the two sides agreed on cooperating in security and combating terrorism fields.
Seehofer emphasised the importance of maintaining stability in the region, highlighting Egypt’ s success in curbing illegal migration from its coasts, and the country’s counterterrorism efforts.
Al-Si si called for intensifying cooperation in security training, capacity-building, information exchange and the provision of developed equipment to strengthen Egyptian capabilities in countering terrorism and curbing illegal migration.
The president stressed the need to boost international efforts to reach a comprehensive strategy over illegal immigration, and support economic and social development programmes.
On the other hand, German Foreign Minister Haikou Maas praised Egypt’s economic development, expressing his country’s desire to boost bilateral relations. He called on German companies to invest in Egypt in the coming period.
The two sides discussed the regional developments in the Middle East, as Al-Sisi called for pushing forward the Palestinian-Israeli peace process to reach a comprehensive peace agreement, and end the longlasting conflict permanently.
Al-Sisi arrived in Germany on Sunday on a four-day visit to take part in the G20 Compact with Africa (CwA). He met with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, German counterpart FrankWalter Steinmeier, and President of the Bundestag Wolfgang Schäuble, as well as other top German officials.
During the visit, the two countries signed economic cooperation protocol worth €129m, and announced a new Egyptian-German initiative for education, technical, and vocational training.
The protocol was signed by Egypt’s Minister of Investment and International Cooperation, Sahar Nasr, Minister of Education, Tarek Shawki, and German Minister of Development and Economic Cooperation, Gerd Muller.
The protocol aims to establish several projects over the coming four years in the fields of energy with €43m, water with €39m, economic development with €45m, and youth development with €2m.