The FINANCIAL — On 31 May -1 June 2015, the delegation of the Georgian Foreign Ministry, headed by Deputy Minister David Jalagania, visited the Arab Republic of Egypt.
During the visit, on 31 May, bilateral political consultations were held between the Georgian and Egyptian Foreign Ministries. The Egyptian delegation was headed by Assistant Foreign Minister for European Affairs and Security and Strategic Organizations Affairs Hatem Seif El-Nasr, according to MFA Georgia.
Talking points included all current issues on the agenda of co-operation between the two countries, including development of relations in the spheres of policy, economy, agriculture, tourism, education, culture, etc. The delegations underlined the importance of further development of friendly and partner relations between their countries and made plans for enhancement of bilateral and multilateral co-operation, including development of the legal basis, exchange of high level visits and more active co-operation on the humanitarian issues in the international organisations. Both delegations underlined the need to bring the relations between the countries to a qualitatively new stage.
Georgia attaches particular importance to intensification of political and economic relations with Egypt, one of the leading states in the Middle East region and in the Arab world as a whole. It should be noted that the Egyptian delegation gave a highly positive assessment to the concert of the Georgian National Ballet in front of the Great Pyramid of Giza, which was dedicated to the National Day of Georgia and initiated by the Embassy of Georgia in Egypt. It was underlined that this performance was an important step towards the enhancement of people-to-people and cultural links with Egypt and the Arab world. Moreover, the performance was broadcasted by two Egyptian TV companies in the whole Arab world.
On 1 June, the Georgian delegation visited the Headquarters of the General Secretariat of the League of Arab States in Cairo and met Deputy Secretary General Ahmed Benhelli. The sides focused on bilateral relations between Georgia and the League and discussed the prospects of humanitarian co-operation in multilateral organizations. The Georgia delegation delivered a letter of the Georgian Vice Prime Minister, Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development to Secretary-General of the League of Arab States Nabil El-Arabi, in which the Georgian side invited the Secretary-General to participate in Georgia’s Silk Road Forum in October 2015. Ahmed Benhelli noted that the Arab world is greatly interested in implementation of trade, economic and infrastructural projects from East to West, including Georgia, and underlined the need to maintain peace and stability in both regions.
During the meetings, the Georgian delegation informed the colleagues on the current situation in Georgia’s occupied territories, Geneva Discussions and the so-called “treaties” signed between Russia and Sokhumi and Tskhinvali occupation regimes. Representatives of Egypt and the League of Arab States reaffirmed their strong support for Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders.
At the end of the visit, the Georgian delegation will meet National Security Advisor to President of the Arab Republic of Egypt Faiza Abou El-Naga.
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