Egypt Denies Selling Airports, Ports to Foreign Parties

Cairo International Airport in Cairo, Egypt (File photo: Reuters)
Cairo International Airport in Cairo, Egypt (File photo: Reuters)
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Egypt Denies Selling Airports, Ports to Foreign Parties

Cairo International Airport in Cairo, Egypt (File photo: Reuters)
Cairo International Airport in Cairo, Egypt (File photo: Reuters)

The Egyptian government denied “selling ports and airports to foreign parties,” stressing that such rumors circulating on some websites and social media are baseless.

The cabinet issued a statement asserting that none of the Egyptian ports or airports will be sold to foreign parties, either at the present time or in the future.

It urged all media outlets to be careful and accurate before reporting such news that could undermine national projects.

Ministries of Transport and Civil Aviation stressed that “Egyptian ports and airports are wholly owned by the state and subject to Egyptian sovereignty and will remain so.”

The two ministries explained that the state is implementing an integrated strategy to develop the maritime transport system in accordance with the latest global systems, with the aim of maximizing its competitiveness.

The strategy also aims to keep pace with global developments in transportation, saying it includes raising the efficiency of the infrastructure and superstructure and applying the latest information technology systems.

The government also has a plan to comprehensively develop Egyptian airports, by implementing a number of infrastructure development projects, raising the level of services provided to travelers, as well as upgrading the security systems at all airports.

The cabinet affirmed that top international health measures are applied at the airports to ensure the safety of passengers and workers.

The Ministry of Civil Aviation said it used the period during which travel restrictions were imposed at airports to limit the spread of the coronavirus to implement extensive maintenance, including all departure and arrival halls in the airports.

The authorities also indicated that all communication networks, electricity and security devices, and the facilities infrastructure were included in the maintenance operations.

In addition, a number of new airports have been established most notably Sphinx, the New Administrative Capital, Berenice, and Bardawil.



Trump Exempts Mexico Goods from Tariffs for a Month, but Doesn’t Mention Canada

Construction workers are seen on the site of a new development in Long Beach, California, March 5, 2025. (AFP)
Construction workers are seen on the site of a new development in Long Beach, California, March 5, 2025. (AFP)
TT

Trump Exempts Mexico Goods from Tariffs for a Month, but Doesn’t Mention Canada

Construction workers are seen on the site of a new development in Long Beach, California, March 5, 2025. (AFP)
Construction workers are seen on the site of a new development in Long Beach, California, March 5, 2025. (AFP)

US President Donald Trump on Thursday said Mexico won't be required to pay tariffs on any goods that fall under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement on trade until April 2, but made no mention of a reprieve for Canada despite his Commerce secretary saying a comparable exemption was likely.

"After speaking with President Claudia Sheinbaum of Mexico, I have agreed that Mexico will not be required to pay Tariffs on anything that falls under the USMCA Agreement," Trump wrote on Truth Social. "This Agreement is until April 2nd."

Earlier on Thursday, US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said the one-month reprieve on hefty tariffs on goods imported from Mexico and Canada that has been granted to automotive products is likely to be extended to all products that comply with the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement on trade.

Lutnick told CNBC he expected Trump to announce that extension on Thursday, a day after exempting automotive goods from the 25% tariffs he slapped on imports from Canada and Mexico earlier in the week.

Trump "is going to decide this today," Lutnick said, adding "it's likely that it will cover all USMCA-compliant goods and services."

"So if you think about it this way, if you lived under Donald Trump's US-Mexico-Canada agreement, you will get a reprieve from these tariffs now. If you chose to go outside of that, you did so at your own risk, and today is when that reckoning comes," he said.

Nonetheless, Trump's social media post made no mention of a reprieve for Canada, the other party to the USMCA deal that Trump negotiated during his first term as president.

Lutnick said his "off the cuff" estimate was that more than 50% of the goods imported from the two US neighbors - also its largest two trading partners - were compliant with the USMCA deal that Trump negotiated during his first term as president.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called Lutnick's comments "promising" in remarks to reporters in Canada.

"That aligns with some of the conversations that we have been having with administration officials, but I'm going to wait for an official agreement to talk about Canadian response and look at the details of it," Trudeau said. "But it is a promising sign. But I will highlight that it means that the tariffs remain in place, and therefore our response will remain in place."

Lutnick emphasized that the reprieve would only last until April 2, when he said the administration plans to move ahead with reciprocal tariffs under which the US will impose levies that match those imposed by trading partners.

In the meantime, he said, the current hiatus is about getting fentanyl deaths down, which is the initial justification Trump used for the tariffs on Mexico and Canada and levies on Chinese goods that have now risen to 20%.

"On April 2, we're going to move with the reciprocal tariffs, and hopefully Mexico and Canada will have done a good enough job on fentanyl that this part of the conversation will be off the table, and we'll move just to the reciprocal tariff conversation," Lutnick said. "But if they haven't, this will stay on."

Indeed, Trudeau is expecting the US and Canada to remain in a trade war.

"I can confirm that we will continue to be in a trade war that was launched by the United States for the foreseeable future," he told reporters in Ottawa.