Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry received on Sunday a video call from Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi on bilateral relations as well as the latest regional and international developments. Ahmed Hafez, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said that discussions took place during the conversation on ways to continue to push forward the bilateral relations between Egypt and Japan at various levels, especially in the fields of culture, investment and trade, in light of the distinguished relations between the two countries. The two sides also discussed the different cooperation mechanisms between Egypt and Japan for the benefit of Arab and African countries, which represent fertile ground for developing the prospects of cooperation between the two sides. Minister Hayashi expressed his country's continued support for the activities of the Cairo International Center for Conflict Resolution, Peacekeeping and Peace-building. They also discussed the aspects of strengthening coordination and cooperation between the two sides within the framework of the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD), and expressed their aspiration for the eighth summit of the Conference to be held this year in Tunisia. The two sides stressed the importance of this summit focusing on supporting the economies of African countries in light of the various challenges they face in connection with the Coronavirus pandemic and recent international developments. Hafez added that the two sides also discussed cooperation between the two countries as part of ongoing efforts to prepare Egypt for the upcoming 27th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP27), to be held in November 2022, of which Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry is the designated president. The two ministers also discussed the coordination and joint consultations with a view to contributing to the success of the Conference and its outcome, with a view to enhancing the functioning of the international climate. The meeting dealt with the exchange of views on the most important issues on the regional and international arenas and in multilateral frameworks, with an agreement to continue consultations and coordination between the two sides during the next stage on bilateral and regional issues of common concern.
