Egypt received on Tuesday an official invitation to attend the upcoming Arab League summit in Algeria in November.
Algeria has been preparing to host the 31st summit since 2019. It will be the first in-person summit for Arab leaders since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic.
According to the Egyptian presidency, Algerian Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra handed President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi a letter from his Algerian counterpart Abdelmadjid Tebboune, which included an invitation to the summit.
Presidential spokesman Bassam Rady said Sisi welcomed Tebboune’s invitation, saying Cairo hopes to work with Algiers to ensure the success of the summit in bolstering joint Arab action to address the challenges facing the Arab world.
He stressed that Egypt values the close historic relations it shares with Algeria and its people, expressing its interests in strengthening joint cooperation in all fields
Tebboune, for his part, underscored Algiers’ keenness to strengthen and expand cooperation at various levels.
Sisi and Lamamra exchanged views on several regional issues of common interest, especially the latest developments in Syria, Libya and Iraq, Rady added.
He said the officials agreed on “the importance of intensifying joint coordination to work on restoring security, stability and regional peace.”
Several factors have been threatening to postpone the Arab summit, including the disputes between Arab countries and differences over the reinstatement of Syria’s membership at the Arab League.
The issue was put to rest, however, when Lamamra revealed that Damascus had opted that its reinstatement to the Arab League be kept off the summit agenda to preserve Arab unity and address current regional and international challenges.
Egypt’s former Foreign Minister Nabil Fahmy said there are positive signs that the summit will be held on time.
He told Asharq Al-Awsat that “Algeria is determined to host the Arab summit before the end of the year, which will coincide with its celebration of the 60th anniversary of its liberation.”
In response to a question on the impact of the Algerian-Moroccan dispute on the summit, Fahmy said Arab summits must be held regularly, regardless of differences.
