Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi said Sunday he will meet his Egyptian counterpart, Nabil al-Arabi, on the sidelines of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) meeting in Bali, Indonesia, at the end of May. An Iranian news agency quoted Salehi as saying that he will meet with Arabi to discuss bilateral issues and NAM activities. Salehi added, "Iran, Egypt and Cuba are currently troika members of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM). Foreign ministers of the three countries are scheduled to hold talks on NAM activities during its foreign ministerial meeting in Bali.” Since the ouster of former president Hosni Mubarak in February, Egypt has said it will open new chapter in its relations with Iran. Media reports of tension between Egypt and the Emirates due to an Egyptian-Iranian rapprochement were denied by Emirati Ambassador to Cairo Mohamed al-Zaheri, who made reassurances about the strong relations between the two countries. Observers note that the normalization of ties with Iran, as well as rapprochement with Syria, brings Cairo into serious confrontation with its traditional allies, for example Saudi Arabia and the Emirates. Translated from the Arabic Edition
