Minister of Foreign Affairs Sameh Shoukry continued his bilateral meetings in New York on the sidelines of the 71st general debate of the United Nations general assembly. On Saturday, he met with his counterparts from Ireland, Burundi, and with the South Sudan vice president. In his meeting with Irish foreign minister Charlie Flanagan, Shoukry discussed bilateral relations with Ireland and ways to bolster those ties. The two ministers also discussed the Israeli-Palestinian issue and efforts made to resume talks between both sides, as well as other regional issues in Syria, Libya, and Yemen. Furthermore, they both addressed the future of Ireland in the wake of the British exit from the European Union. Flanagan had previously made several statements condemning the detention of Irish citizen Ibrahim Halawa in Egypt. Halawa, 20, has been detained since August 2013. Halawa, along with 493 other defendants, is standing trial in Egyptian courts on charges of inciting violence at Al-Fatah mosque in Cairo's Ramses area, following the dispersal of the Rabaa Al-Adaweya sit-in in August 2013. Flanagan was quoted in early August by Irish media as saying he is "deeply disappointed and concerned at the latest delay in the Egyptian trial of Halawa". Additionally, Shoukry met with vice president of South Sudan Taban Deng to follow up on recent developments in the South Sudan conflict. Shoukry said that Egypt will continue to provide support for South Sudan in all possible ways through its current membership in the UN Security Council and the African Union. The war between president Salva Kiir Mayardit's armed supporters and his rival started in December 2013 until a peace deal in August 2015. However, the clashes resumed in late August this year. Shoukry also said that Egypt is willing to join peacekeeping troops that will be deployed in South Sudan, highlighting that Egypt has no interest in the conflict except to maintain security. Early in September, South Sudan accepted 4,000 more UN peacekeepers. Besides this, Deng expressed his willingness to resume development projects undertaken by Egypt in South Sudan in the fields of agriculture, education, and healthcare.
