President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi discussed matters of regional interests, especially concerning economics, terrorism and the situation in Libya, during meetings with EU representatives on the sidelines of the Economic Summit. Al-Sisi met with Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, who assured Italy's commitment to maintaining helpful bilateral partnership relations with Egypt, especially following an Italian Economic Delegation's visit to Egypt in February. "We trust Egypt's leader Al-Sisi and strongly support your goals and efforts towards your country's development," Renzi said in his speech at the Summit Friday. "Your war is ours and your stability means our stability, in the region and in the whole world." Renzi also expressed his alignment regarding efforts to solve the Libya crisis, describing the situation as a war between "civilised nations and extremists, which has nothing to do with religion". Al-Sisi also met with British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond, who stated a common desire for the global community to work together tackling the shared threat of the Islamic State militant group (IS). "We also discussed how to take forward the ‘UK/Egypt high-level Security Dialogue' and the current situation in Libya," Hammond stated. A presidential statement added that Hammond saw the high turnout at the Economic Summit reflected the international community's confidence in Egypt's future. Federica Mogherini, High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs, also guaranteed Europe's assistance to Egypt due to its strategic regional role and in particular concerning the situation in Libya. Mogherini had discussed the Libyan issue with Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry during his visit to the US in February. Europe and the US had opted for a political solution to the crisis in Libya, following Egyptian airstrikes in mid-February allegedly on IS targets in Derna after the beheading of 21 Egyptian Copts.
