UPDATE-2: Cairo, Seoul set to diverisfy co-operation

Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi stressed on Sunday that Egypt cherishes historical ties with South Korea and praised the achievements in bilateral relations which reflected the depth and sincerity of these ties.

The President’s remarks came during his meeting with Speaker of the South Korean National Assembly Park Byeong-seug in the presence of Parliament Speaker Hanafi El-Gabali and the Korean ambassador to Cairo, Presidency Spokesman Ambassador Bassam Radi said.

During the meeting, the President said that ties between the two countries are reinforced by the exchange of high-ranking visits between the two countries, which provided the impetus to develop cooperation in all fields, the most recent of which was the visit the Korean defense minister paid to Cairo last August. Such exchanges, the President added, help identify and explore broad horizons for the development of bilateral relations.

For his part, the Korean senior official asserted Korea’s high estimation at both official and popular levels of in its close relations with Egypt, referring in this context to the mutual interest in strengthening areas of cooperation, especially with regard to expanding Korean investments in Egypt.

This comes with a view to taking advantage of Egypt’s strategic location to enter markets in Europe and to bolster the comprehensive cooperative partnership in a way that matches the capabilities of the two friendly countries and supports the transfer of the Korean development experience to Egypt, especially in light of the modern infrastructure that Egypt has built in recent years.

Ways to enhance the frameworks of joint bilateral cooperation in several sectors as well as ways for Egypt to benefit from the ancient Korean expertise in technological industries and cooperation in facing the repercussions of the coronavirus pandemic were considered during the meeting, spokesman Radi said.

Views were also exchanged on key developments of regional and international issues of common interest, with the Libyan crisis and the Palestinian cause in the foremost of such issues, the Presidency spokesman said.

The Korean official valued the Egyptian political weight as a cornerstone in maintaining security and stability in the Middle East and Africa, making special reference in this regard to Egypt’s efforts and moves to reach a political settlement of crises in the region.

He also praised recent moves in the file of the peace process through maintaining calm between the Palestinian and Israeli sides and improving the humanitarian and living conditions of the Palestinians, especially through the estimated initiative for the reconstruction of Gaza.