In Pics: Sisi, South Korea President Tackle Various Issues

President Abdel Fattah El Sisi met with the President of South Korea, Moon Jae-in, at Ittihadia Palace, where a formal reception was held, national anthems were played and guard of honor was inspected, according to Presidency Spokesperson Bassam Rady.

The two leaders held a session of bilateral talks, followed by an expanded meeting that included the delegations of the two countries.

Sisi welcomed his South Korean counterpart on the first visit of a South Korean president to Egypt in nearly 16 years. He also lauded the profound relations between the two countries as well as the remarkable momentum in their ties during the last period.

"The President stressed the importance of activating the comprehensive cooperative partnership between the two sides to be commensurate with the capacities and capabilities of Egypt and South Korea and help Egypt benefit from South Korea’s unique experience of development," said Rady.

On his part, the South Korean President expressed pleasure at visiting Egypt for the first time.

He extended his gratitude to Sisi for the warm reception and hospitality and expressed keenness to continue coordination and consultation between the two friendly countries across various fields.

President Moon looked forward to developing and strengthening South Korea's relations with Egypt, especially in light of its pivotal role under the leadership of President Sisi, so as to lay the foundations for stability and security in the Middle East and the African continent.

The South Korean President also confirmed his country’s interest in boosting the size and scope of its investments in major development and infrastructure projects in Egypt and other projects in all sectors.

The spokesman said the talks tackled ways to enhance bilateral relations, especially economic, investment, and trade ties.

They also focused on cooperation in upgrading and improving the railway sector, which is a key priority that Egypt relies on to expeditiously achieve a significant leap in the development process currently underway. This is in addition to the fact that it is a vital facility that impacts the citizens’ daily life.

The two presidents also discussed prospects for maximizing cooperation between the two countries in the localization of the electric car industry in Egypt, in addition to collaborating in the fields of communications, information technology, automation, tourism, infrastructure projects, and mining.

They also touched on ways to engage South Korea in the implementation of the Decent Life Initiative, and in cooperation in the field of all types of energy, given the two countries' keenness to persify and secure their energy sources.

The meeting also covered ways to foster closer military and security cooperation, especially in joint manufacturing and the transfer and localization of technology. This comes in light of the pivotal role that Egypt plays in the region and its responsibility to achieve stability and security and combat terrorism, in addition to South Korea’s advanced technological capabilities and military industries.

Rady noted that the talks reviewed regional and international developments on issues of common interest. There was consensus on these issues, mainly the developments in the Libyan crisis.

President Sisi asserted that Libya’s stability is a priority for Egypt.

Egypt, therefore, continues its tireless efforts with the Libyan parties to hold national elections. The President also affirmed Egypt's permanent support for all mechanisms that ensure the security and stability of the Korean Peninsula.

The Korean president praised Egypt’s political leverage as a cornerstone for safeguarding security and stability in the Middle East and Africa, especially Egypt’s actions to reach a political settlement for the crises in the region.

This is in addition to its diligent efforts, led by the President, to combat terrorism and extremism, disseminate the values of coexistence and tolerance in the region, and consolidate bridges of dialogue between African and Arab countries with other countries in the world.

Concluding the talks, the two presidents witnessed the signing of a number of memoranda of understanding between the two countries in the fields of trade and economic partnership, development cooperation, and railways.

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