President El-Sisi Arrives in Djibouti for a Session of Talks with President of Djibouti

President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi arrived this morning in Djibouti and was received by President Ismail Omar Guelleh and a large number of senior Djiboutian officials. The ceremonial welcome was held, the two national anthems were played, and the guard of honor was reviewed.

The Spokesman for the Egyptian Presidency stated that the President had a session of talks with the President of Djibouti at the presidential palace, followed by expanded talks in the presence of the delegations of the two countries. President Guelleh expressed his country's appreciation for the close and historical cooperation relations with Egypt, commending the sincere Egyptian efforts seeking to support economic reform and development in Djibouti. He further hailed Egypt’s pivotal role in supporting stability in the African continent.

President Guelleh affirmed that there are broad prospects for expanding cooperation between the two brotherly countries in many fields, particularly on the economic, security and developmental levels, praising the activity of Egyptian companies and their contribution to enhancing development efforts in the African continent. In this context, President Guelleh expressed his country’s aspiration to increase the activity of the Egyptian private sector in Djibouti as well as its keenness to provide all facilities and a supportive environment to that end.

Djibouti's President emphasized his appreciation for the technical support as well as capacity building and cadre training programs offered by Egypt to Djibouti in various civil and military fields, thus reflecting the depth of relations between the two countries.

For his part, President El-Sisi renewed his congratulations to his brother President Guelleh for securing a second term in office after winning the presidential elections, which reflects the confidence of the Djiboutian people in their wise leadership and its ability to preserve the stability of the country. The President expressed his pleasure at visiting Djibouti for the first time, stressing that this visit comes as a continuation of the course of distinguished relations binding the two brotherly countries and in support of the joint cooperation at all levels. These robust relations reflect the serious Egyptian desire to enhance bilateral relations between the two countries in all fields, thus advancing to the level of strategic partnership.

The President also affirmed Egypt's keenness to enhance support for development efforts in Djibouti, especially with the presence of broad prospects for developing economic cooperation and boosting bilateral trade between the two countries and increasing cooperation in the fields of combating extremist ideology, building infrastructure, and promoting energy, health, aviation, port linking, education and culture sectors. This is in addition to transferring Egyptian expertise, providing technical support and capacity building programs for Djiboutian cadres in various sectors as well as developing cooperation to support Djiboutian security and military institutions.

The Spokesman added that during the talks, the two sides had an in-depth discussion on prospects for joint cooperation between Egypt and Djibouti, expressing satisfaction for the level of cooperation and coordination between the two countries. They stressed the importance of supporting and strengthening this coordination for the benefit of the two brotherly countries and peoples by optimizing all available opportunities to enhance integration as well as building on the positive results achieved during the exchange of visits between senior officials of the two countries.

Furthermore, views were exchanged on the most prominent issues on the regional arena, particularly the East and Horn of Africa. These discussions reflected a mutual understanding between the two sides regarding ways to deal with these files in order to ensure strengthening the African capabilities to address the challenges facing the continent at large.

During the meeting, the two leaders agreed to hold more bilateral meetings between senior officials of the two countries periodically to coordinate carefully toward the successive developments currently witnessed in the geographical surroundings of the two countries. In this context, the President praised the efforts of President Guelleh in achieving economic development, security and stability in the Horn of Africa and the Red Sea region.

They highlighted the strategic partnership between Egypt and Djibouti within the framework of the efforts to combat terrorism and all forms of organized crime in the Horn of Africa as well as the ongoing cooperation in the security file of the Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb Strait (“Gate of Tears” in Arabic) to achieve goals related to promoting security and economic development in the region, especially since Egypt and Djibouti face the same challenges and share the same vision in this regard. The two sides expressed their aspiration to continue working through the Council of Arab and African States Bordering the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden and to confront any attempts made by foreign parties to impose their vision on the region.

The two presidents also discussed the Nile waters issue and the latest developments regarding the negotiations on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD). The two leaders agreed on the importance of reaching a fair and balanced legal agreement on the filling and operation of the GERD, in a way that achieves the interests of the three countries: Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia and preserves regional stability, emphasizing that it is necessary for all parties to demonstrate the goodwill and the political will in the negotiations process.

The two leaders also discussed the developments of the Palestinian cause; the President of Djibouti appreciated the Egyptian efforts that led to reaching a ceasefire agreement between the Palestinian and Israeli sides. The President affirmed that Egypt's involvement in efforts stems from Egypt's historical responsibility toward the Palestinian cause. The two presidents stressed the importance of engaging in the political settlement process in order to reach a just, comprehensive and lasting solution to this cause in accordance with international references.

At the conclusion of the talks, the two Presidents held a joint press conference in which President El-Sisi delivered a speech on this occasion.