CAIRO: Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit is meeting with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Washington on Thursday to discuss the Middle East peace process and issues pertaining to Sudan.
While ministry spokesman Hossam Zaki said in a statement that Aboul Gheit “will discuss with Clinton a number of regional and bilateral files of mutual interest,” US State Department spokesman Phillip Crowley told reporters Wednesday that also on the agenda was Egypt’s upcoming parliamentary elections.
“Egypt is approaching…important elections coming up. (But also) We’ll talk about Middle East peace,” he said.
Egypt is slated for parliamentary elections at the end of November, and there have been domestic concerns that the elections will be in a similar vein to previous ones, which were marred by allegations of fraud and bribery, and outbreaks of violence.
The minister’s visit comes after a recent Israeli announcement to build an additional 1,500 housing units in settlements in Jerusalem. The decision was criticized by the Arab world as well as by US President Barack Obama during a visit to Indonesia.
“This kind of activity is never helpful when it comes to peace negotiations,” he said.
This sentiment was echoed by Crowley, who said, “We have indicated that we think these kinds of announcements at this time are — even if there’s a process that’s going to carry over for months, if not years — are counterproductive to our efforts to get the parties into a direct negotiation.”
For his part, Zaki expressed “Egypt’s condemnation of the decision taken by Jerusalem Municipality on building new settlements in Eastern Jerusalem, indicating that such decisions will have negative, profound effect not only on chances of resuming negotiations, but also raising suspicions on the seriousness of the Israeli side to commit to a credible and real negotiation process.”
Additionally, on the agenda for discussion between Aboul Gheit and Clinton is the issue of Sudan and its future as the South heads towards a referendum on secession in 2011. Egypt is a staunch ally of the government in Khartoum, and is looking to ensure stability in the country even in the event of the South seceding.
Crowley said on the issue, “The United States is prepared to follow up aggressively on a path towards a different kind of relationship with Sudan if Sudan, along with South Sudan, meets its obligations under the CPA (Comprehensive Peace Agreement).”
