Egypt’s Sisi calls on Arabs, Europeans to ‘overcome what could divide us’

Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi called on Arab and European nations to “overcome what could divide us” at the closing session of the first-ever EU-Arab League summit that has been taking place in Sharm El-Sheikh.

“We have successfully convened; yet our successful cooperation is pending your work, because you will be the ones who will reap the benefits of this mutual cooperation,” Sisi said in his speech to the summit on Sunday, as he praised the Arab-European partnership.

He said the two-day summit, the first of its kind, had seen fruitful and constructive discussions, and affirmed his confidence that this high-level coordination would contribute in clarifying visions and shaping a common strategy and approach to a number of issues of common interest.

Sisi described the results of the summit as “exceeding all expectations,” despite varying opinions about the identification of the causes or ways of dealing with a number of topics.

He announced that a second EU-Arab League summit will be held in Brussels in 2022.

Earlier on Monday, the final day of the summit kicked off with a session on “Boosting European-Arab Partnership and Addressing Regional Challenges Together.”

The Egyptian president opened the summit on Sunday in the attendance of representatives from 50 states, including 24 Arab and EU leaders.

Attendees included EU Council President Donald Tusk, EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, Saudi Arabia’s King Salman, the UK’s Prime Minister Theresa May, and Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Source: Ahram Online