Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron discussed on Friday bilateral cooperation in countering terrorism at the local, regional and international levels, especially in Africa.
They met on the sidelines of the Paris International Conference for Libya and underlined the importance of bolstering Euro-Mediterranean cooperation between Egypt and the European Union.
They pointed to the current health, environment, economic, political and social crises and stressed the need to achieve stability and growth for regional countries, as well as curbing the flow of illegal migrants to the Mediterranean basin countries.
According to presidency spokesperson Bassam Rady, Macron hailed the development in Egyptian-French ties in all areas, which has been reflected in the numerous mutual visits between senior officials from both countries.
Macron further confirmed his country’s keenness to maximize bilateral cooperation in the future and enhance political coordination and exchange of views on various issues of mutual interest, Rady added.
Egypt is considered one of France’s key partners in the Middle East region and plays a pivotal role in achieving regional security and stability, he quoted Macron as saying.
Sisi, for his part, commended the remarkable level of bilateral and strategic ties with Paris in various fields, especially politically, economically, commercially and militarily.
He underscored keenness to continue consultations with Macron on a regular basis over issues of bilateral cooperation and deepening the Egyptian-French partnership, Rady stated.
They praised Egyptian-French military ties, especially after concluding many major arms deals in recent years, he noted.