President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi met on Sunday with the head of the World Jewish Congress, Ronald Lauder, who is currently on an official visit to Egypt, and discussed regional and international issues, according to a statement issued by presidency.
The statement noted that Al-Sisi emphasised during the meeting that Egypt is open to engage with all segments of the American society so as to enhance bridges of communication and common understanding regarding the nature of the challenges facing the Middle East and ways to address them.
Moreover, he stressed upon the strategic nature the longstanding, steadfast Egyptian-American relations and confirmed that these relations need to be strengthened in the coming period.
From his side, Lauder praised Egypt’s pivotal role as a force of stability and peace in the Middle East and its huge efforts to eradicate terrorism in a decisive manner, as well as its ongoing economic reform efforts to enhance the Egyptian economy and improve its international competitiveness.
Regarding Al-Sisi’s upcoming visit to the US, which is expected to take place during the first week in April, Lauder said that the visit is of special importance to further advance the strategic partnership between the two countries and promote them towards broader prospects.
Also, Al-Sisi reiterated Egypt’s commitment to continue to positively contribute to paving the way for the resumption of peace negotiations between Palestinians and Israelis in order to reach a just, comprehensive, and final solution based on the two-state solution and the establishment of a Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital.
He further asserted that Egypt exerts the utmost effort to settle the ongoing crises in the Middle East. These efforts are based on a firm position to maintain the national state and work on supporting and enhancing the cohesion of its institutions so as to preserve its unity and territorial integrity.
He stressed the importance of countering terrorism in the region and ending the vacuum that allowed its expansion over the past years, calling on the international community to exert more efforts to address terrorism and root it out.
Concerning the different aspects that should be followed to end terrorism, Al-Sisi emphasised that countering terrorism should not be limited to military and security aspects, but should expand to encompass developmental and cultural dimensions, including renewing the religious discourse and promoting the quality of education.
