In a quick visit to Egypt on Thursday, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis met with President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and called this meeting “brief but productive.”
It is the first visit of Mitsotakis to Egypt after his re-election in June and the formation of his new government.
Egypt and Greece share strong bilateral relations, especially in the political and economic fields, and embark on joint development projects at the bilateral level and also at the trilateral level with Cyprus.
In a meeting in El- Alamein, Sisi and Mitsotakis also stressed the importance of continuing energy cooperation with regard to natural gas, power linkage and green transformation.
They affirmed keenness to ensure quick activation and implementation of the agreements and MoUs signed by the two countries within the framework of the Egyptian-Greek cooperation.
The two leaders discussed regional issues of mutual concern as well as the East Mediterranean Gas Forum (EMGF). They also tackled the illegal immigration phenomenon in the Mediterranean.
In this regard, Mitsotakis praised the Egyptian efforts to face illegal immigration especially in light of the burden that Egypt shoulders by hosting millions of refugees.
The Greek premier said his country is keen to continue expanding relations with Egypt at various levels, especially in light of the prominent Egyptian role in facing the current crises and challenges in the Mediterranean region.
Mitsotakis’ statements
“I am here to reaffirm the strategic depth of relations between Greece and Egypt and to thank Egypt for their actions to support my country by sending military helicopters to assist in the battle with the wildfires,” Mitsotakis stated after the meeting and his visit to the monument of the fallen Greeks in El Alamein during WWII.
In statements to the press, Mitsotakis said, “We had the opportunity to discuss all the issues of our cooperation, to make an overall assessment of the geopolitical condition in the eastern Mediterranean. To reaffirm that Greece and Egypt are factors of stability in our wider geopolitical region. But also to discuss new prospects of cooperation with emphasis on issues of energy that now the interconnection between Greece and Egypt via a cable of electric energy is a project that appears to have the support of the European Union.”
“But also to reaffirm our volition to cooperate also on matters that have to do with human resources. As you already know, there is currently a shortage in human resources in Greece, whether we speak of the primary sector or construction and we have launched a plan for the speedy implementation of the initial idea regarding cooperation in this sector. As I have said several times, we want to encourage legal migration but we will be very strict with illegal migration. Egypt can offer assistance to Greece to cover our needs in human resources.
“All the above will have as capstone the decision to proceed to the establishment of a Supreme Council of Cooperation with Egypt, with the presence of many members of the Cabinet. We hope that the first meeting of such a council will take place in Greece early in 2024, when we will invest even more to this relation in the interest of both Greece and Egypt and of our peoples.”
El-Sisi statements
Sisi congratulated Mitsotakis again on the electoral victory achieved by his ruling party in the Greek parliamentary elections last June, which has confirmed the Greek voters’ confidence in Mitsotakis’s leadership, the statement said.
Also, Sisi hailed Greece’s positions towards Egypt at the bilateral level as well as within the framework of the European Union (EU).
The president also praised the fruitful cooperation between Egypt and Greece within the tripartite cooperation mechanism with Cyprus.
Egypt and Greece share strong bilateral relations, especially in the political and economic fields, and embark on joint development projects at the bilateral level and also at the trilateral level with Cyprus.
This includes a potential power project under which the three countries plan to link their electricity grids as per an MoU they signed in October 2021.
The three countries have also held numerous summits to push forward their tripartite cooperation projects and enhance their relations in all fields.
Ukraine, Libya
During Thursday’s meeting, Sisi and Mitsotakis discussed the developments of the Russia-Ukraine crisis as well as the crisis in Libya.
In this regard, Sisi affirmed Egypt’s stance in supporting the political track in Libya, highlighting the importance of holding the presidential and parliamentary elections as constitutional entitlements.
Sisi also stressed the need for the exit of all foreign troops and mercenaries from the Libyan lands in order for Libya to restore its sovereignty, territorial unity and stability.
The two sides agreed on continuing their intensified coordination on common challenges facing the region in order to achieve the aspirations of their peoples in living in peace, security and stability.
sources: amna, egypt today
