CAIRO – Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry has asserted that achieving the goals of Union for Mediterranean (UfM) would be easier in case of achieving peace and stability in the region.
Shoukry’s statements came during the annual meeting of the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) which kicked off in Barcelona Monday at the level of the foreign ministers in the presence of Arab League chief Ahmed Abul Gheit.
He said the Barcelona event coincides with the 30th anniversary of the Madrid peace conference which aimed at ending Arab-Israeli conflict and reaching permanent, just and durable peace in the Middle East.
The foreign minister called on all parties concerned to work seriously on solving the Palestinian problem through expediting peace talks to establish an independent Palestinian state with Al Quds as its capital on the June 4, 1967 borders.
He called for halting unilateral measures including settlement activities in the Palestinian territories, pointing out that Egypt exerts strenuous efforts to achieve intra-Palestinian reconciliation.
He expressed Egypt’s support for international efforts to face environment challenges and climate change problems and called for coordination with all partners to score successes during the COP27 conference Egypt will host in 2022.
The foreign minister called for creating job opportunities in the south Mediterranean region with taking into consideration the natural resources and investment potentials the region enjoys.
The annual meeting comes within the framework of the 6th annual forum of UFM which will also witness a review of a report prepared by Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development of UfM on regional economic integration in the Euro-Med region.
