Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry called on his Spanish counterpart Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Marjabo to take part in Egypt's conference to support its economy. The call came in light of bilateral discussions that took place between the two ministers Tuesday in Madrid during the ministerial conference, when they also discussed a range of regional topics. The foreign ministry spokesman said, in a statement released on the ministry's official page, that during the meeting, Shoukry reviewed Egypt's political road map accomplishments over the past year. He highlighted that the Egyptian government endeavours to ensure a democratic transition, sustain economic development and counter terrorism. Shoukry mentioned that Egypt seeks to strengthen its ties with Spain on the economic side and he invited Marjabo to participate in Egypt's conference on supporting the economy, which is scheduled to start by the beginning of 2015. According to Marjabo, Spain is willing to join the initiative of improving the Egyptian economy due to its experience in the corporate sector. He also added that Egypt is currently striving to attract foreign investments and work on national projects, including the new Suez Canal project. On a regional level, the discussions involved the situation in Libya, Iraq, Syria and Gaza. Both ministers tackled issues such as the risk of emerging "terroristic" groups in region. The ministerial conference was attended by the foreign ministers of Algeria, Morocco, Libya, Mauritania, Egypt, Sudan, Chad and Niger, as well as Spain, France, Portugal, Italy, Malta, Greece and Cyprus. Representatives from the United Nations, the Arab League and the European Union were present.
