Sisi meets with Portuguese counterpart for cementing ties

CAIRO – 12 April 2018: President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi received his Portuguese counterpart Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa in Presidential Palace of Ittihadyyia on Thursday.

De Sousa is paying a two-day state visit, where he will discuss economic relations enhancement and international and regional issues of mutual concerns.

Several economic and trade agreements are expected to be signed between Egypt and Portugal during the visit, said Egypt's State Information Service (SIS) on Wednesday.

This is the first visit for a Portuguese president to Egypt in 24 years. De Sousa was elected as president in 2016.

De Sousa is expected to meet with Al-Azhar Grand Imam Ahmed el-Tayyeb, Pope Tawadros II of Alexandria and Parliament Speaker Ali Abdel Aal. He is also scheduled to attend the Egyptian-Portuguese Business Forum on Thursday April 12, with a number of Egyptian and Portuguese businessmen.

On the sidelines of his meeting, the Portuguese president will take a tour of Al-Azhar Mosque, accompanied by al-Tayeb, to see its architectural and historic landmarks, particularly after its restoration.

After his tour, he will give a lecture highlighting the relations between East and West, as well as the ways to enhance the values of coexistence and dialogue between different cultures and religions, referring to Portugal as a role model for coexistence among its community components.