Egyptian-Saudi Political Consultation Committee Supports GERD Talks

Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan and his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry, Asharq Al-Awsat
Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan and his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry, Asharq Al-Awsat
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Egyptian-Saudi Political Consultation Committee Supports GERD Talks

Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan and his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry, Asharq Al-Awsat
Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan and his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry, Asharq Al-Awsat

Saudi Arabia and Egypt agreed on the importance of guaranteeing freedom of navigation in the Arabian Gulf, the Bab El-Mandab strait and the Red Sea, and stressed that they reject any attempt to hinder navigation in the area.

This came in a joint statement issued by the Egyptian-Saudi Political Consultation Committee after a meeting led by Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan and his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry was held on Tuesday.

Saudi Arabia, for its part, backed Egypt’s rights to preserve its water security with respect to the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD).

Farhan asserted his country’s support of Egypt’s aim to reach a legally binding agreement on the GERD through serious talks.

Saudi Arabia also acknowledged that Egypt’s water security was integral to Arab water security.

The two countries reaffirmed that their shared ties are pivotal to the stability of the region on political, economic, Islamic, cultural and military levels. They said that the future of the region requires strengthening joint cooperation between the two countries to support the interests of their peoples.

More so, the two sides stressed the rejection of regional interference in Arab internal affairs and attempts to destabilize the region's security and stability.

They also stressed the importance of the Palestinian issue as the central issue of the Arab nation, and emphasized that a just and comprehensive solution requires establishing an independent and sovereign Palestinian state on the borders of the 1967 agreement, with East Jerusalem as its capital, based on the Arab Peace Initiative and relevant international legitimacy decisions.

For his part, Shoukry expressed Egypt’s total support for Saudi Arabia protecting its national security and rejects any attack on Saudi territories, asserting that the national security of the kingdom is connected to that of Egypt.

The two sides also agreed on the importance of preserving Libya’s security and rejecting all foreign interference in its affairs, and stressed that they support a comprehensive political solution based on the Berlin Conference and the Cairo Declaration.

Shoukry and Farhan also agreed that Egypt and Saudi Arabia should work to boost economic cooperation and work on removing any obstacles standing in the way of increasing commercial and investment exchange.

They also discussed the latest developments concerning the coronavirus pandemic and its repercussions on various levels.



Saudi Arabia to Host Arab-Islamic Summit Calling for Halt to Israeli Assault on Palestinian, Lebanese Territories

Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, chairs the extraordinary Arab-Islamic summit in Riyadh in November 2023. (SPA)
Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, chairs the extraordinary Arab-Islamic summit in Riyadh in November 2023. (SPA)
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Saudi Arabia to Host Arab-Islamic Summit Calling for Halt to Israeli Assault on Palestinian, Lebanese Territories

Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, chairs the extraordinary Arab-Islamic summit in Riyadh in November 2023. (SPA)
Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, chairs the extraordinary Arab-Islamic summit in Riyadh in November 2023. (SPA)

Arab and Islamic leaders will meet in Riyadh on Monday for a summit that will call on Israel to stop its assault on Gaza and Lebanon.

The summit aims to seek means to protect civilians, support the Palestinian and Lebanese people, unify stances and pressure the international community to take serious action to stop the ongoing violations and reach lasting stability and peace in the region.

Saudi Arabia is hosting the summit at the directives of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz and in continuation of the efforts exerted by Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince and Prime Minister.

The summit is an extension of the extraordinary Arab-Islamic summit that Riyadh hosted in November 2023 in wake of the eruption of the war on Gaza.

Political analyst Munif al-Harbi told Asharq Al-Awsat that Monday’s summit will underscore several issues, namely ending the Israeli assault and genocide in Gaza and its war on Lebanon. It will call for respecting the sovereignty of nations, easing the regional escalation and implementing the two-state solution to end the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

The summit will also work on supporting Saudi Arabia’s efforts in forming the international coalition for the implementation of the two-state solution and garnering international support for the state of Palestine to receive full membership at the United Nations and its agencies, he added.

It will encourage countries that have not yet recognized an independent Palestinian state to do so. It will hold Israel fully responsible for the developments in Gaza and Lebanon given its violation of Interational law and international humanitarian law, he went on to say.