Sisi, Ramaphosa discuss African affairs, bilateral relations

CAIRO - 23 April 2019: President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi held a meeting with South African counterpart Cyril Ramaphosa early on Tuesday in the presence of Minister of Foreign Affairs Sameh Shokry and Chief of General Intelligence Abbas Kamel.

Presidency Spokesperson Bassam Rady revealed in a statement that the talks covered strengthening bilateral relations and continuous consultation over African affairs of mutual interest.

Ramaphosa thanked his Egyptian counterpart for hosting a consultative meeting on Sudan, and Troika summit on Libya.

President Sisi stated that Egypt works on coordinating stances on pressing African issues underlining the importance of developing an African vision to deal with crises that occur in the continent’s states. The president highlighted that the vision must be rooted in the concept of “African solutions for African crises.”

President Sisi expressed Egypt’s eagerness to further consultation and coordination with South Africa on coming up with that vision in light of Egypt’s chairmanship of the African Union (AU), and South Africa’s membership of the Troika and the UN Security Council.

The bilateral meeting has also included discussions on the situation in Sudan. President Sisi affirmed Egypt’s support for the choices of the Sudanese people, and the necessity of concerting efforts to aid Sudan to overcome the current stage successfully in a manner that preserves the willpower of the Sudanese people and the state institutions.

Two African summit meetings are held on Tuesday in Cairo on Libya and Sudan.