Shoukry, Spanish counterpart discuss economic relations in Madrid

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Thu, 15 Feb 2018 - 09:14 GMT

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Thu, 15 Feb 2018 - 09:14 GMT

Egypt’s Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry (L) with his Spanish counterpart Alfonso Dastis Quecedo (R) in Madrid on Feb. 14, 2018 - Press photo

Egypt’s Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry (L) with his Spanish counterpart Alfonso Dastis Quecedo (R) in Madrid on Feb. 14, 2018 - Press photo

CAIRO - 15 February 2018: Egypt’s Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry discussed bilateral relations in a meeting with his Spanish counterpart, Alfonso Dastis Quecedo in Madrid Wednesday, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Ahmed Abu Zeid said.

The meeting was also attended by the Spanish defense minister and the Egyptian diplomatic representative in Spain, Omar Selim.

Shoukry hailed the close relations between the two countries in all regional issues and expressed his keenness to enhance coordination between the two countries.

During the meeting, Shoukry reviewed indicators of the Egyptian economy’s improvement through the implementation of the economic reform program in cooperation with the International Monetary Fund.

During the meeting, they stressed the importance of raising the economic and trade relations between the two countries, especially with the rise of trade exchange between them, which reached around $1 billion in 2017, Abu Zeid said.

They discussed means of benefiting from the promising investment opportunities in many sectors, especially energy. In addition, Shoukry stressed that there are promising opportunities to participate in national projects, especially the Suez Canal and New Administrative Capital.

They discussed means of enhancing cooperation in the tourism and cultural fields between the two countries. The meeting also tackled military cooperation between the two countries, as the two countries expressed the appreciation of the mutual military relations.

Morever, Shoukry stressed the importance of restoring the peace process in Palestine by recognizing a Palestinian state along the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.

He added that Egypt is fighting terrorism in the Middle East, and the talks also tackled Egypt's efforts to settle the Libyan and Syrian crises and push forward the Middle East peace process.

Shoukry headed for Spain Tuesday on a two-day visit to boost bilateral ties, the ministry's spokesman said.

Upon his arrival, Shoukry met with Spanish King Felipe VI and discussed means of enhancing bilateral cooperation in the political, economic and trade domains.

On his part, King Felipe VI hailed Egypt’s “Comprehensive Military Operation of Sinai 2018”, which the Egyptian armed forces launched on Friday to purge the country from terrorism.

The minister will then leave Spain for Munich to attend the Munich Security Conference (MSC), slated for February 15-18.

The MSC agenda will focus in particular on the future role of the European Union as a global actor and its relations with Russia as well as the United States.

Shoukry will be the main speaker at the conference's session on combating terrorism.

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