Egypt's President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi received a high-level Italian delegation on Tuesday, headed by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Antonio Tajani. Tajani's visit to Cairo, heading an expanded trade mission from major Italian companies, comes within Egypt's long-standing friendly relations with Italy, and the strong political will of both sides to develop and advance these relations to serve the interests of the two friendly peoples, the spokesperson for the presidency Ahmed Fahmy said. During the meeting, Al-Sisi affirmed that Egypt welcomes the Italian officials and companies, which have a record of fruitful work in Egypt. The president noted the broad prospects for economic cooperation at all levels, which was valued by the Italian side. He pointed out that this visit comes to activate the strategic partnership between the two countries and lay the foundation for further economic cooperation by strengthening the presence of Italian companies in Egypt, particularly, in the fields of agriculture and food. "This is in light of the vital importance of working to achieve food security during the current phase, in which the world suffers from successive crises in this regard," according to Fahmy. The meeting also touched on a number of topics regarding bilateral cooperation, as well as exchanging views on regional and international issues of mutual interest. The issues of illegal migration and efforts to cooperate in the field of energy were also discussed. The two sides agreed to continue working on these areas in the coming period to maximize the utilization of the two countries' great potential and continue coordination to face the growing international political and economic challenges. The delegation included Minister of University and Research, Anna Maria Bernini; Secretary General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Riccardo Guariglia; and a number of Italian officials of major companies working in several fields, particularly, agriculture, land reclamation and food industries, as well as the Italian ambassador in Cairo. From the Egyptian side, the meeting was also attended by Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly, Minister of Foreign Affairs Sameh Shoukry, Minister for International Cooperation Rania Al-Mashat, and Minister of Agriculture and Land Reclamation ElSayed ElKosayer.
