Egypt’s Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty on Thursday met ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn on the sidelines of the ASEAN Ministerial Meeting in Manila, where they discussed strengthening institutional ties, expanding cooperation and coordinating on regional and international issues of mutual interest.
Abdelatty praised the ASEAN Secretariat's role in promoting regional cooperation and fostering dialogue and consensus among member states, reaffirming Egypt's commitment to deepening engagement with Asian countries and advancing its partnership with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
He said Egypt's participation in the ministerial meeting reflects its efforts to build on growing ties with Asia and elevate cooperation at both the bilateral and multilateral levels while enhancing consultation on global and regional challenges.
The minister underlined Egypt's interest in strengthening its institutional partnership with ASEAN alongside expanding bilateral relations with member states, noting that political, economic and cultural ties have grown significantly in recent years, with Egypt establishing strategic partnerships with several Asian countries.
Abdelatty said Egypt is ready to expand cooperation with ASEAN in areas where it has expertise, including capacity building, human development, technical training, joint manufacturing, media, disaster management, counterterrorism, climate change and tourism.
He also highlighted Egypt's recent achievements in infrastructure development, smart cities, renewable energy and higher education, saying these sectors offer broad opportunities for cooperation with ASEAN countries.
The foreign minister pointed to Egypt's strategic geographic location and its position as a gateway to Arab and African markets, citing investment opportunities in the Suez Canal Economic Zone as well as water desalination and treatment projects.
He added that Egypt is prepared to share its experience in technical training, capacity building, counterterrorism and peacebuilding, drawing on its long-standing expertise in training civilian and security personnel, particularly in Africa.
On cultural cooperation, Abdelatty emphasized the role of Al-Azhar in promoting moderation, tolerance and dialogue through its longstanding ties with ASEAN countries. He also highlighted the scholarships Al-Azhar offers annually to students from ASEAN member states and called for stronger cooperation in tourism to boost two-way travel and people-to-people exchanges.
In turn, ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn welcomed the growing relationship between Egypt and the regional bloc, describing Egypt as an important ASEAN partner and expressing the organization's commitment to further expanding coordination and cooperation in support of shared interests.
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