US, Egypt ponder expanding bilateral ties
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Alaina
- . November 12, 2022
- . Update: November 12, 2022 10:56 pm
Joe Biden, the US president, and Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, his counterpart in Egypt, emphasised their “shared commitment multidimensional US-Egypt strategic relationship” on Friday, according to Anadolu News Agency.
The White House stated in a statement that Biden and the Egyptian President “firmed their commitment to accelerate global efforts to tackle the climate problem” during their meeting.
The two men were in Sharm El-Sheikh, an Egyptian resort town, for a major UN climate conference. The statement likely referred to a bilateral regional dispute between Egypt and Ethiopia over an Ethiopian dam that could reduce Egypt’s share of the River Nile’s waters.
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“President Biden expressed the United States’ solidarity with Egypt in the face of the global economic and food security challenges caused by Russia’s war on Ukraine, as well as his support for Egypt’s water rights,” it said.
Biden continues “increased awareness of the value of respecting fundamental freedoms and human rights. The two leaders also discussed opportunities to deescalate disputes, challenges to regional stability, and the long-standing defence cooperation between the United States and Egypt.
Biden’s trip to Egypt marks his first since taking office in January 2021. Biden will visit Phnom Penh, Cambodia on November 12–13 to take part in the biennial US-ASEAN Summit and the East Asia Summit following the COP27 summit.
According to a statement from the Egyptian Presidency, US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi spoke with El-Sisi on Thursday about the Russian-Ukrainian conflict as well as the Ethiopia dam issue without coming to a resolution with Cairo.
