CAIRO: Ambassador Mohamed al-Orabi said Egypt's Prime Minister, Dr. Essam Sharaf nominated himself as the upcoming Foreign Minister to succeed Dr. Nabil al-Araby, who decided to take office as the Director General of the Arab League on July 1. Al-Oraby added al-Araby is still Egypt's Foreign Minister over an evening talk show phone call with al-Hayat al-Youm. He said, "I'm waiting for the return of Dr. al-Araby from abroad." Al-Oraby clarified Egypt intends to strengthen international relations after the January 25 Revolution and refused to talk about the priorities of his foreign agenda. Former ambassador and potential presidential candidate, Abdallah al-Ashaal expressed pessimism over choosing al-Oraby for such a position. He believes the decision is a continuation of policies that were implemented in the Foreign Ministry during Mubarak's term. Al-Ashaal clarified the Egyptian January 25 Revolution was meant to overthrow the former regime and policies so Egypt can complete liberating the country from the remnants and corrupt policies of the former regime. He criticized depriving the Egyptian diplomatic institution from Dr. Nabil al-Araby, who managed to change the strategies of Egypt's foreign policy and pushing them to the "tomb" of the Arab League.
