Ashraf Sadek CAIRO, April 12, 2018 - President Abdel Fattah El Sisi on Thursday praised the historic fraternity that binds Egypt and Portugal and said that Cairo and Lisbon had agreed to seek ways to boost their co-operation in all domains. Addressing a joint press conference after his summit meeting with Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, President Sisi said they had reviewed all aspects of co-operation and had followed up the implementation of all agreements that had been signed during his visit to Lisbon in 2016. Welcoming the visit by President de Sousa, the first by a Portuguese Head of State to Egypt in 24 years, President Sisi described the relationship binding Cairo and Lisbon as a model of coordinated action by two states. He also expressed Egypt's keenness on promoting relations and coordination with Portugal in such a manner as to help the two friendly countries deal with the present complicated challenges and threats facing the Mediterranean region. "No country can by itself face the present challenges such as terrorism, extremism, organised crime, illegal migration, and the destructive roles that are being played by some regional parties to promote armed conflict and civil war and bring down the national state institutions so they can carry out their own narrow agendas," President Sisi said. "Hence my talks with President de Sousa focused on a host of regional issues of bilateral concern such as the latest developments in Libya and Syria in addition to ways of strengthening our joint efforts to combat terrorism and terrorist groups and to drain their financial resources," President Sisi said. President Sisi added that he reviewed with President de Sousa the efforts being made by Egypt to confront terrorism and extremist thought, aconfirming that terrorism was no longer limited to threatening the countries of the region but had now expanded and was threatening the security and stability of the world at large. "Egypt has adopted a comprehensive spectrum for combatting this ugly phenomenon, so as to defend its national security and to discharge its regional and international responsibilities. "The Egyptian spectrum involves the culture of development, the economic dimension and the security aspect," President Sisi said. He added that his talks with President de Sousa also dealt with the strategic Egyptian-European relations, which are based on joint interests, mutual respect and constructive dialogue. President Sisi said that he valued and appreciated the supportive Portuguese stances regarding the strengthening of Egyptian-European relations. "President de Sousa and I agreed it was necessary to promote Egyptian-Portuguese-European ties in order to support development efforts in African countries and to strengthen co-operation between Europe and the African Continent," President Sisi said. Concluding his statement, President Sisi said that he was confident that President de Sousa's visit to Egypt had created an atmosphere that was favourable to increasing the level of economic, political and strategic co-operation between the two countries. President de Sousa, the first European leader to visit Cairo after President Sisi won the March 26-28 presidential elections, hailed Egypt for upholding the values of pluralism and citizenship. He told reporters that his visit to Cairo was a true manifestation of the friendship between the Portuguese and Egyptian states and peoples. President de Sousa said that he was happy to witness the signing of two co-operation pacts between Portugal and Egypt during his visit. Earlier in the day, the Suez Canal Authority and a Portuguese port authority signed a co-operation agreement. Later, Cairo's Ain Shams University and Lisbon's Le Porto University signed a memorandum of understanding for increasing their co-operation. "These two pacts which demonstrate the depth of the relationship between Portugal and Egypt will help promote Portuguese culture in the whole world," President de Sousa said. He also said that there were other areas of Portuguese-Egyptian co-operation such as health and social development. The Portuguese president expressed his country's appreciation of the pivotal role undertaken by Egypt in the Middle East and the southern Mediterranean. He confirmed that his country also appreciated Egypt's valuable contribution to fighting terrorism and extremism and achieving peace and security in the region. President de Sousa emphasised that his country stood in full support of Egypt in confronting terrorism and illegal migration and in hosting more than five million refugees for free. President de Sousa said he appreciated President Sisi's invitation to visit Egypt and confirmed that Lisbon was keen on promoting co-operation with Cairo at every level. He said that he had discussed with President Sisi the present crises being experienced by some countries in the region. President de Sousa added that he agreed with Egypt's view, which stresses the importance of consolidating efforts to reach a solution that preserves the sovereignty of these countries, their unity and territorial integrity. He also highlighted the depth of relations that bind the two countries and the importance of Egypt's role as the main pillar of security and stability in the region. President de Sousa affirmed his country's interest in enhancing the exemplary relations with Egypt in various fields in addition to pushing forward co-operation in a way that serves the interests of the two peoples. President de Sousa praised Egypt's achievements on the road to reform and comprehensive economic and social development. He confirmed that his country valued the key role played by Egypt at the Arab, African and regional levels in the service of common Arab and African causes.
