A round of political consultations between Egypt and the Netherlands was held in The Hague. The round was chaired by the Egyptian Assistant Foreign Minister for European Affairs, Badr Abdel Aty, and Paul Huijts, Secretary General of the Dutch Foreign Ministry, with the participation of Egypt's Ambassador to the Netherlands Hatem Abdel Kader. The two sides discussed ways to advance bilateral relations in various fields, especially on the promotion and diversification of trade exchange, and the increase of Dutch investments in Egypt in light of the climate of economic development witnessed by the country and the rapid development efforts in all sectors. It was also discussed to benefit from the Dutch expertise in the fields of agriculture, irrigation systems, water management, livestock and poultry, The talks touched on the possibility of cooperation in the logistical fields, whether between the Suez Canal Authority and the Port of Rotterdam, especially in the field of port management, or with the Suez Canal Economic Zone. The prospects for tripartite cooperation between the two countries in Africa were also discussed, in light of Egypt's African weight and development expertise. The two sides expressed their satisfaction with the distinguished level of relations at the political level, especially in light of the recent meeting that brought together the President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi and the Prime Minister of the Netherlands on the sidelines of the Climate Summit in Glasgow. The two delegations also agreed that there are great opportunities available to further develop and deepen economic and trade relations between the two countries. Dutch companies can benefit from the promising potentials in the Egyptian market in various sectors, especially in the areas of infrastructure, logistics, water resources management, agriculture, digital transformation, waste management and clean energy. The two sides exchanged views on the latest developments in regional and international issues of common concern, especially the Middle East peace process, the situation in Libya and Sudan, the developments of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) issue and the importance of reaching a binding legal agreement on filling and operating the dam. The issue of climate change was also addressed, especially in light of Egypt's expected hosting of the twenty-seventh session of the Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) next year, as well as the importance of fulfilling international commitments aimed at helping developing countries to combat climate change.
