US President Joe Biden told his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah al-Sisi during their closed session Friday that Washington understands and supports Cairo in its efforts to preserve its rights and water security, Presidential Spokesman Bassam Rady said Saturday.
The United States considers Egypt as a reliable friend and ally in the region, Rady quoted Biden as saying during his meeting with Sisi in the Red Sea resort city of Sharm El Shiekh on the sidelines of the United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP27.
The closed session dealt with files of bilateral cooperation related to investment and trade between Egypt and the US, as well as regional and international issues of common concern.
Sisi briefed Biden on Egypt’s firm position in applying the principles of international law with regard to dams established on cross-border rivers, Rady said. “Egypt only demands the application of these rules to the Renaissance Dam case.”
Biden was keen to listen to Sisi’s assessment of the regional situation in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and other regional files, he added.
Egyptian-US relations are very special. They have gone through very strong tests over the past 10 years and all those experiences have greatly proven their strength and durability, the spokesman said.
On the human rights file, Rady said that President Sisi has always affirmed that Egypt is pursuing a comprehensive course of human rights.
Concerning the terrorism file, he affirmed that Biden expressed great appreciation for Egypt’s role in defeating terrorism in the region and spreading the values of tolerance, peaceful coexistence and freedom of belief.
Rady stressed that Egypt plays a pivotal role under the leadership of President Sisi at the regional, international and global levels and greatly contributes to reaching political settlements regarding all crises in the region.
Egypt is currently witnessing security, political, social and economic stability in its comprehensive sense, the spokesman said. “Despite the global crises that the world has gone through, Egypt was able to stand on hard surfaces.”
