President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi met with Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Latvia Edgers Rinkēvičs on Sunday in the presence of Egypt's FM Sameh Shoukry. In a statement, Presidential Spokesperson Bassam Rady said that the president stressed Egypt's keenness to strengthen cooperation and bilateral relations with Latvia and maintain coordination on political issues of mutual interest. Furthermore, he said that the meeting witnessed a review of a number of files related to bilateral cooperation, where the president welcomed the activity of a number of Latvian companies in Egypt and looked forward to intensifying cooperation, especially in areas where Latvia has outstanding expertise, such as communications, IT, education, and tourism. The meeting also touched upon a number of regional and international issues of common interest and challenges facing African and European countries, especially illegal migration and terrorism, which necessitate coordination and work between the two sides to reach effective solutions to these challenges. They also discussed and exchanged views on the developments of the Russian-Ukrainian War and its negative repercussions on the global economy. The Latvian FM then stressed his country's keenness to advance aspects of cooperation with Egypt, especially in light of its pivotal role in the Middle East, the Mediterranean, and Africa. Later on Sunday, Shoukry met with Rinkēvičs to sign an amendment to an agreement in the field of education and scientific research between Egypt and Latvia. At a joint press conference, Shoukry pointed out that Egypt is paying attention to modern technology in light of the economic renaissance that the country is witnessing, explaining that Rinkēvičs is accompanied by an economic delegation that will discuss these matters. The Egyptian FM also touched on the importance of bolstering cooperation in the field of trade, tourism, and the economy in light of the economic reform programme adopted by the Egyptian government. Moreover, he pointed out the possibility of Latvia benefiting from investment opportunities in Egypt by pushing its companies to invest there. Regarding the situation in Libya, Shoukry stressed the need to reach a specific time to hold presidential and parliamentary elections in Libya in order for a new government to take power that preserves the wealth of Libya for its people. He also indicated that the presence of militias, foreign forces, and mercenaries in Libya restricts the freedom of the Libyan people to determine their future, stressing the importance of concerted international efforts to expel these actors. For his part, Rinkēvičs stressed the need for external parties not to interfere in the internal affairs of Libya in light of the existence of different views between countries. Furthermore, Shoukry stressed that his talks with Rinkēvičs tackled the war in Ukraine, the Israeli-Palestinian issue, the situation in Syria, and the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam(GERD), pointing to Egypt's aspiration to continue coordination with Latvia on these matters. Additionally, Rinkēvičs stressed that his country is working to strengthen relations between the two countries in the logistics sector, pointing out that there are common interests in specific sectors. Finally, Rinkēvičs stressed that his country looks forward to attending the 27th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP 27) in Sharm El Sheik this November.
