Sisi leaves Saturday for first state visit to Washington

CAIRO – 31 March 2017: Egyptian President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi is scheduled to leave Cairo Saturday for his first state visit to Washington D.C. since Donald Trump was inaugurated as President of the United States, according to a Friday statement by the president’s office.

During the visit, which comes per an invitation from President Trump, both leaders will talk bilateral relations and regional and international issues on Monday.

The statement said combating terrorism and the conflicts in the Middle East will be among the topics discussed in the Egyptian-U.S. summit at the White House.

Prior to talks with the U.S. President, Sisi is expected to hold a number of meetings with senior officials including Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson and Vice President Mike Pence in addition to members of Congress and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

President Sisi will land in New York City before heading to Washington, the statement added. Sisi visited New York City a few times over the past three years to attend meetings of the United Nations General Assembly.

In January, Sisi congratulated Trump on his inauguration, and in their phone call the leaders discussed ways to boost the fight against terrorism and extremism, according to

Reuters

.