PRESIDENT Abdel Fattah El Sisi and visiting Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman yesterday visited Ismailia City where they toured some national projects. Accompanying the president and the Saudi crown prince were Minister of Defence Sedki Sobhi and head of the Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone) Mohab Mameesh. During the tour, Admiral Mameesh gave a presentation before President Sisi and Crown Prince Mohammed on the SCZone. The SCZone head said that the Suez Canal Development Project will turn Egypt into an international trade and logistical hub. He added that the project provides huge investment opportunities in the industrial, service and tourism sectors. Admiral Mameesh also referred to the wide horizons provided by co-operation opportunities between the SCZone and Saudi Arabia's NEOM project on the Red Sea. The Head of the Armed Forces Engineering Authority, Major General Kamel el-Wazeer, also gave a presentation before President Sisi and the Saudi crown prince on the project to construct tunnels below the waterway and the progress achieved in implementing this project. Maj Gen el-Wazeer said that planning is under way to dig a new tunnel, adding up to the four tunnels which are now being built. A huge workforce of some 10,000 engineers, technicians and workers is implementing the project, Maj Gen el-Wazeer said, adding that the aim of constructing the tunnels is to connect the Sinai to the rest of the country and enhance the movement of people and trade to and from the Sinai Peninsula, Presidency Spokesman Ambassador Bassam Radi said. President Sisi and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed then crossed the eastern side of the Suez Canal through one of the newly-constructed tunnels the length of which exceeds 3,000 meters. The new tunnels reduce the Suez Canal crossing time to 20 minutes instead queuing at the Suez Canal crossing points and al-Salam Bridge for a period of up to five days. The Sisi-bin Salman tour also included the New Ismailia City which spans an area of 2,157 feddans. The city is located on the western bank of the Suez Canal and includes in its first phase the building of 35,000 residential units. Envisaged under the new city's second phase is the building of a total of 57,000 residential units, Spokesman Radi said. President Sisi and the Saudi crown prince then made a tour in the waterway of the Suez Canal. They then opened the Forsan resort in Ismailia City where assistant to the Defence Minister Major General Nabil Salama gave a presentation about the project. The Forsan resort, Maj Gen Salama said, is being developed on an area of 38 feddans in Ismailia governorate, west of the Suez Canal. He added that the resort is a comprehensive tourism project. In statements to the state TV yesterday, Presidency Spokesman Radi said that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's visit to Egypt comes within the framework of longstanding, historical and strategic relations that bind the two countries. Noting that Egypt is the first destination in Prince Mohammed's first external tour as crown prince, the presidency spokesman said that the visit reflects the broad coordination between the two sides with regard to the regional situation and the political files at the Arab and Islamic levels. On Saudi investments in Egypt, the presidency spokesman noted that Saudi Arabia is the top Arab investor in Egypt. Talks between President Sisi and Crown Prince Mohammed dealt with this topic and more details will be announced later, Ambassador Radi added.
