CAIRO – Commander of the Egyptian Navy Ashraf Ibrahim Atwa said the Egyptian Navy is seeking hard to upgrade its armament systems to cope with international military developments, adding that thanks to the support of the political leadership under Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces President Abdel Fattah El Sisi an agreement has been reached to purchase four German-built MEKO A-200 frigates.
Several days ago, a ceremony was held in the German port city of Bremerhaven to celebrate the handover of one frigate to Egypt. Commander Ibrahim Atwa raised the Egyptian flag on the frigate.
At a press conference held marking the 55th anniversary of the Naval Forces, Commander Atwa said according to MENA that the Egyptian Naval Forces have been established since the era of Mohammed Ali Pasha in 1809. Since then, the Egyptian Navy has made a shining record by countless acts of sacrifice and patriotism, he added.
He greeted the Naval Forces, saying the Egyptian Navy Day date was set to mark the sinking of the Israeli destroyer “Eilat”, the first in history to be sunk by ship-to-ship missiles, off the coasts of Sinai Peninsula on October 21, 1967.
He said such incident was a remarkable one in the history of the world naval troops as small naval pieces had successfully managed to destroy a huge warship “Eilat”, causing a change in the world’s strategic thought and that’s why this date is celebrated as the Egyptian Navy Day.
Speaking about the Russia-Ukraine crisis, Commander Atwa said that since the outbreak of the war, Egypt has called for seeking diplomatic solutions and political settlements and warned against its grave impact on the world’s economic and humanitarian conditions.
All steps taken by Egypt in this regard have showed that the Egyptian diplomacy has never took sides, he said, adding that Egypt has adopted a neutral policy and the evidence is that the Suez Canal Authority has abided by the rules of freedom of navigation and refused to close the waterway to prevent the crossing of any ship.
He said the Egyptian Navy possesses an advanced maritime force that can deter any threat to national interests, highlighting the great role it has played in countering terrorism in Sinai and protecting national security and stability.
“Our Navy is ready to carry out all tasks assigned by the General Command of the Armed Forces in an efficient and professional way,” he added, noting that Egypt’s Navy is an integral part of its Armed Forces and there is permanent cooperation among the basic formations to secure all strategic fronts of the state.
As regards joint drills and exercises with Egypt’s friends, Commander Atwa said such joint drills aim at keeping abreast of the latest maritime tactics as well as assessing the field operations that can be conducted by the naval troops on the eastern and western fronts.
He underlined the Egyptian Navy’s efforts in eradicating and fighting illegal migration to Europe, shedding light on the international praise of Egypt’s efforts in this regard.
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