Lavrov stresses Russia’s support to Egypt against terrorism

CAIRO – 25 December 2017: Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov asserted Russia’s support to Egypt in combating terrorism, stressing that Cairo and Moscow have strong strategic ties in trade and other fields.

In an interview with Russia Today satellite channel on Monday, Lavrov said, “Moscow has intensively cooperated with Cairo in all fields.”

He pointed out that Russia has expanded its cooperation with Egypt with the Dabaa nuclear power plant and the Russian Industrial Zone (RIZ) in Port Said.
The RIZ will be established on an area of 5.25 square kilometers and will be built over three phases.

Egypt’s Minister of Electricity and Renewable Energy Mohamed Shaker said earlier that the first unit of the Dabaa nuclear power plant is expected to be completed by 2026, while the second, third and fourth units will be completed by 2028.

"The Dabaa nuclear power plant for peaceful activities consists of four nuclear units with a total capacity of 4800 megawatts," added Shaker, pointing out that the electricity generated will desalinate water in Dabaa and El-Alamein.

"Russia and Egypt signed cooperation agreements to build the nuclear plant. On August 26, both countries signed contracts to build the first phase of the plant, which includes four out of eight reactors," stated Shaker.

“In military cooperation, mutual military trainings have been conducted between the two countries,” Lavrov added.

On December 11, Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Cairo to discuss regional issues and bilateral projects with Egyptian President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi.

In November, Russia’s government published a draft agreement between Russia and Egypt allowing both countries to use each other’s air bases for military purposes.

According to the published agreement, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev ordered the Russian Defense Ministry to hold negotiations with Egyptian officials and to sign the document once both sides reached a consensual agreement.