A meeting of the Russian-Egyptian working group on combating terrorism will be held in Cairo in the near future, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov announced in an interview with the Egyptian newspaper Al-Ahram.
"Joint work within the framework of this mechanism contributes to strengthening our cooperation in the anti-terrorist direction. We are planning to hold another meeting of the group in Cairo in the near future," he said.
The Russian Foreign Minister noted that Moscow and Cairo stand for uniting efforts to counter the global threat of international terrorism and support a close dialogue on the issue at the UN platform.
Lavrov stressed that along with political dialogue, mutually beneficial cooperation in trade and economy was developing between Russia and Cairo. However, the Minister stated, the pandemic had a negative impact on the dynamics of trade turnover, which in 2020 decreased from $6.25 billion to $4.54 billion compared to 2019.
At the same time, Lavrov stressed, large-scale joint projects continue to be implemented, such as the construction of a Russian-designed nuclear power plant in Egypt in Ed-Dabaa, the creation of a Russian industrial zone in the Suez Canal economic zone, and the supply of railway carriages to Egypt. "The registration of the Russian vaccine Sputnik V in Egypt in February this year has created good prerequisites for activation of contacts between specialized structures of the two countries on possible supplies of this drug to the ARE," he added.
Negotiations in the 2+2 format
The timing of a new round of talks between Russian and Egyptian Foreign and Defense Ministers in the "two plus two" format is being coordinated, Lavrov said.
"Regular meetings of foreign and defense ministers in the 2+2 format are an important element of the bilateral political dialogue. The specific dates for the next round of consultations are being agreed upon with the Egyptian side as the substantive content of their agenda," he said.
The Minister noted that Egypt is one of Russia's key partners in the Middle East and Africa. "The nature of our relations with Egypt is determined by the agreement on comprehensive partnership and strategic cooperation signed by Presidents Vladimir Putin and Abdel Fattah el-Sisi in Sochi in October 2018 and entered into force in January this year," he stressed.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Based on materials from TASS