Egypt and Saudi Arabia underlined the need to maintain coordination and efforts to support the region’s security and stability.
In a joint statement, the two countries emphasized “the importance of joint Arab action and the Palestinian cause,” condemning “attempts to undermine the security and safety of navigation in the Arabian Gulf.”
The statement came following a meeting on Thursday between Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry and his Saudi counterpart, Prince Faisal bin Farhan al-Saud in Cairo.
Meanwhile, Egypt’s Foreign Ministry said on Thursday that the two officials reviewed the “distinguished bilateral relations between the two countries at all levels.”
According to an official statement, the foreign ministers highly valued “cooperation and coordination between the two sides in the political, economic, security and cultural levels, in a way that enhances the security and stability of the two brotherly countries and supports the interests of their peoples.”
Shoukry and his Saudi counterpart stressed “the importance of joint Arab action and the role of the Arab League in strengthening and resolving the region’s crises in accordance with relevant international resolutions and the principles of international law.”
The two sides pointed to the importance of the Palestinian Cause, saying that a just and comprehensive solution requires the establishment of an independent and sovereign Palestinian State based on the borders of June 4, 1967, with East Jerusalem as its capital, as stipulated in the Arab Peace Initiative and relevant international legitimacy resolutions.
Cairo and Riyadh affirmed their “rejection of attempts by regional parties to interfere in the internal affairs of Arab countries or threaten their stability and undermine the interests of their people, whether through ethnic and sectarian incitement, terrorism, or expansionist ideas that do not respect the sovereignty of states…”
In this regard, the two sides agreed to “continue to fight terrorist organizations in the region in all their forms.”
The Egyptian Foreign Ministry’s statement said that the two officials condemned attempts to harm the security and safety of navigation in the Arabian Gulf, Bab al-Mandab Strait, and the Red Sea.
They stressed “the importance of ensuring freedom of navigation in these pivotal sea lanes, and the need to confront any similar attempts that threaten regional and international security and stability.”
