CAIRO – Egypt’s Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry and Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar renewed on Friday their commitment to work together within the framework of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM).
The meetings between President Abdel Fattah El Sisi and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi reflected the two sides’ political stances aiming at achieving peace and stability at the international level. They also attached importance of issues related to developing countries.
This came during the two ministers’ meeting in the Ugandan capital, Kampala, on the sidelines of the 19th NAM Summit, said Spokesman for the Foreign Ministry Ahmed Abu Zeid in statements.
During their meeting, Shoukry asserted the importance of benefiting from intensifying high-level visits between Egypt and India in 2023 to back the implementation of the strategic partnership agreement between the two countries.
The two ministers agreed on establishing a working team to follow up on the implementation of existing Indian projects in Egypt, particularly the projects that were launched in the field of green hydrogen. In this regard, Shoukry stressed that Egypt attached great importance to boosting its investments in this area.
The two ministers agreed on promoting bilateral ties in various domains, topped by the pharmaceuticals, renewable energy and information technology sectors.
The meeting also touched on a number of regional and international issues of common interest, including the latest developments in the occupied Palestinian territories and means to advance efforts to calm the situation and reduce the escalation between the Palestinian and Israeli sides.
In this respect, the Indian minister expressed keenness to listen to Shoukry’s assessment and insights on the current situation in the Gaza Strip.
He also expressed India’s appreciation of efforts made by Egypt to put an end to this crisis and alleviate the unbearable suffering of the Palestinian people.
The Indian minister also expressed his country’s concerns regarding the developments taking place in the Red Sea region, noting that a number of his country’s ships were targeted near the Indian coast.
This matter has serious repercussions on international navigation, particularly in light of India’s great interest in international trade corridors, he added.
All the recent developments in the Red Sea and the South Asian regions showed a widening of the conflict, a matter that Egypt has repeatedly warned against it since the serious outbreak of the crisis in Gaza.
He concluded by calling for putting an end to this crisis as soon as possible.
