Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi welcomed on Sunday a host of European Union (EU) leaders who took part in a landmark Egyptian European summit that was followed by the signing of a joint declaration elevating relations to comprehensive and strategic partnership.
The Egyptian leader made the announcement of the declaration in a joint press conference with European leaders following the main summit session.
Representing the European side in the summit were European Union Commission (EC) President Ursula von der Leyen, Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo whose country holds the current rotational presidency of the EU, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer, Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulide and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
The declaration, President Sisi said in a statement to the press conference, was accompanied by a funding package of nearly 7.4 billion euros to support the Egyptian economy. Soft-term financing, investment guarantees and technical support for the implementation of co-operation projects are the package’s three main components, President Sisi said.
President Sisi noted that he had agreed with the EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on organizing an Egyptian-European conference during the second half of the year, on the investment opportunities and potentials in Egypt.
Talks with the European side, President Sisi told the declaration signing event, also focused on bolstering co-operation in the field of energy, either in natural gas, production of green hydrogen, or electricity interconnectivity.
Prior to the summit, President Sisi held separate meetings with European leaders, during which he welcomed the promotion of bilateral ties to the level of strategic and comprehensive partnership, which points to an understanding of Egypt’s pivotal role in Euro-Mediterranean context. The move also reflects the historical relations between the two sides as well as common interests.
The separate meetings addressed the economic and investment co-operation, as well as how to formulate specific steps to ensure optimal benefit from the relative advantages of both sides, Spokesman Fahmy said in a statement posted on his Facebook account.
For their part, the European leaders highly appreciated Egypt’s pivotal and tireless efforts aiming to restore security and stability in the region, the spokesman said.
Source: The Egyptian Gazette
