Egypt participates in Saudi celebrations of 88th National Day

CAIRO – 23 September 2018: Egypt is participating in Saudi Arabia’s celebrations of the kingdom’s 88th National Day on Sunday, marking 88 years since the kingdom's founding.

Egypt partakes in the celebration as Cairo Tower turned green on Sunday, while Sawt al-Arab (Voice of the Arabs) radio station celebrated the occasion from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 a.m.

Saudi Arabia’s Embassy in Egypt also turned green ahead of the celebrations.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman visited Egypt on March 4 which reflects the close relations between the two countries.

This was bin Salman’s first official foreign tour since he was inaugurated as a Crown Prince to the Kingdom in June 2017. His tour included a two-day visit to Egypt, and a meeting with UK Prime Minister Theresa May on March 7 in London; the tour concluded in the United States.

President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi and Mohamed bin Salman met on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Hangzhou, China in September 2016, following a historic visit to Cairo by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdul Aziz in April. Both leaders discussed stepping up cooperation between Egypt and Saudi Arabia across all fields, and continued consultation and coordination on various regional and international issues to enhance joint Arab action.

In the same context, within the “strategic and discrete” nature of the Egyptian-Saudi relations as described by President Sisi, King Salman bin Abdul Aziz accompanied by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, invited President Sisi for a meeting on Aug. 14, 2018 in the futuristic city of NEOM, the new cooperative aspect of the Egyptian-Saudi cooperation.

NEOM is the first private zone to span over Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Jordan and to be funded by the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund, as well as local and international investors, Mohamed bin Salman stated.

The visit is considered to be unprecedented and exceptional, as President Sisi was the first high-ranked official to be welcomed by Kind Salman in NEOM.

During the meeting, the leaders exchanged views on the latest developments in the region, its national security, issues of mutual development interests, and bilateral relations.

The meeting endorsed the harmonious and strategic frameworks that make up Egyptian-Saudi relations. In a sign of warmer relations and closer cooperation, both Egypt and Saudi Arabia embarked on mutual and collaborative initiatives to boost stability and development in the region.

Recently, the Saudi-Egyptian accord has brought many indications that underline the depth of the relationship between the two countries, and their partnership in renaissance, development and security through various mega projects.

From the beginning, there was a recognition that cooperation between the two countries is indispensable for stability in the region, and therefore the two countries needed to find a way to expand their cooperation beyond the existing status quo. Accordingly, both states allowed many new channels for cooperation to tighten their relations and enhance the region’s security.