Egyptian, Spanish FMs discuss Ukraine, Palestine, Libya, GERD in Madrid meeting

CAIRO – 19 April 2022: Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry and his Spanish counterpart, Jose Manuel Albares, discussed on Monday a number of regional and international issues of mutual concern as they met in Madrid.

The discussions have included the Ukraine crisis and its implications, the current deteriorating situation in the Palestinian lands, the Egyptian efforts to bring the Libyans closer together, said the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

In this regard, Shoukry affirmed Egypt’s support to a Libyan-Libyan solution to the crisis in the Arab country. Shoukry also highlighted to Albares the Egyptian unwavering stance on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD).

The two ministers affirmed the need to maintain the current progress in the Egyptian-Spanish relations and to enhance them, the statement read.

Shoukry affirmed Egypt’s aspiration to enhance the partnership and economic relations with Spain through many axes, on top of which is increasing trade exchange between the two countries.

This comes especially through boosting Egyptian exports and increasing direct Spanish investments in Egypt so that investors can benefit from the many promising opportunities in the various sectors of the country, including infrastructure, transport, water, renewable energy and electric mobility, Shoukry said.

The meeting also discussed the scheduled Egyptian presidency of the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) and the multilateral cooperation through the United Nations and the Union for the Mediterranean, the statement said.

The meeting also discussed Spain’s support of partnership between Egypt and the European Union given the progress seen in this partnership currently.

Shoukry and Albares, signed on Monday an MoU on cooperation in the field of diplomatic studies and exchange of expertise between the Egyptian Foreign Ministry’s Institute of Diplomatic Studies and the Diplomatic School of Spain.

The MoU signed by the two diplomats aims at enhancing cooperation in exchange and training programs, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Shoukry and Albares chaired a consultation session between the delegations of the two countries to address all files of bilateral relations and ways to develop them. The session also discussed international and regional files of common interest.

The two ministers also held a press conference on the key points they discussed during the consultation session.

Shoukry headed Sunday to the Spanish capital upon an invitation of his counterpart, Albares. During the visit, he met with Spain’s King Felipe VI and Spanish Minister for the Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge Teresa Ribera.

King Felipe VI has hailed the progress seen in bilateral relations between Egypt and Spain, affirming the aspiration toward further progress in these relations as he received Shoukry.

During the meeting on Monday, King Felipe VI hailed Egypt as a pivotal partner in the region and discussed with Shoukry regional and international issues of mutual concern in light of the two countries’ keenness to establish security and stability on the regional and international levels.

The top Egyptian diplomat briefed the king on the great achievements made by the Egyptian government through the economic reform program and the launch of major projects in all sectors within the framework of Egypt's Vision 2030.

Shoukry expressed aspiration for further involvement of the Spanish companies in development projects and green transformation efforts in Egypt.

This comes especially in light of the ambitious Egyptian plans in this regard and Egypt’s scheduled hosting of COP27 in November, Shoukry explained.

Shoukry expressed satisfaction of the progress witnessed in the bilateral relations between Egypt and Spain, especially in light of the exchanged visits and phone calls, the most recent of which was the visit of the Spanish Prime Minister to Cairo in December and his meeting with President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi.

He affirmed that Egypt looks forward to building on the results of successful meetings and contacts between the officials of the two countries during the last period.

Shoukry and Ecological Transition Minister and third Deputy Prime Minister Ribera discussed cooperation on the scheduled Egyptian presidency of COP27 in a meeting on Monday.