Foreign Minister: Egypt always backs Bahrain's unity, rejects foreign interference in Arab region

Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said Egypt always backs Bahrain's unity and stability, rejecting any foreign interference in the Arab region.

At a joint press conference on Tuesday with Bahraini Foreign Minister Sheikh Khalid bin Ahmad bin Mohamed al Khalifa, Shoukry said that several memoranda of understanding and executive programs were outlined during the Egyptian-Bahraini committee meeting to boost bilateral cooperation in the various domains.

Talks with the Bahraini foreign minister took up a host of Arab issues, the importance of bilateral cooperation to promote the Arab national security and the conditions in Iraq, Syria and Yemen, he added. 

Earlier, the two ministers held a session talks on boosting cooperation between Cairo and Manama in the different fields and an array of regional and international issues of mutual interest. 
Shoukry said that he discussed with his Bahraini counterpart foreign interference in Arab countries' internal affairs, expressing Egypt's total rejection of any foreign interference in the Arab region.

Solidarity among Arab countries is the only way to defend our joint interests against such attempts, Shoukry said, stressing the importance of mutual respect and non-interference in other country's domestic affairs.

For his part, the Bahraini foreign minister underscored the depth of Egyptian-Bahraini ties, adding that Bahraini King Hamad bin Isa al Khalifa is due to arrive in Cairo today on an important visit at an invitation from President Abdel Fattah El Sisi.

During the Egyptian-Bahraini committee's meeting, the two sides agreed on several memorandums of understanding and executive programs to boost bilateral cooperation in the political, military, education, health, environment, youth and sports fields.

He also thanked Egypt for its stances in support of the Bahraini kingdom throughout history, saying these stances reflect Egypt's keenness on protecting Arab national security.

Egypt's stance on Arab regional security is a pillar of regional stability, he added.

Talks with Shoukry took up the conditions in Libya, Iraq, Syria and Yemen, he said, thanking Egypt for its stand rejecting interference in the kingdom's affairs, he said.
FM: Asked about Egyptian-Bahraini relations and the work of the joint committee, the Egyptian foreign minister said the proceedings of the joint committee focused on economic cooperation fields.

Shoukry praised the volume of relations and Bahraini investments in Egypt, pointing out that Egyptian community in Bahrain is blessed by the hospitality of Bahrain's king.

Asked if the proposed bridge between Egypt and Saudi Arabia would affect the proposed bridge between Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, the Bahraini foreign minister said the bridge between Egypt and Saudi Arabia is one of the biggest strategic projects in the region for decades.

He said the bridge would facilitate the trade movement between Gulf countries and Egypt and will pave the way for new projects in the Gulf and Egypt especially in the Suez Canal region.

On Bahraini investments in Egypt, he said a Bahraini economic delegation led by Minister of Industry and Trade Zayed al Zayan is in Cairo to discuss more investment opportunities in Egypt. 
Asked about the presence of an Egyptian initiative to overcome regional challenges, the Egyptian foreign minister said the challenges in the region are numerous as many Arab countries such as Libya, Syria and Yemen are faced by dangerous problems from terrorist organizations threatening their stability and national security.

The foreign minister pointed out that Arab countries are exerting efforts to settle the crises in the countries which are suffering from security problems.

For his part, the Bahraini minister draw a line between the Arab-Israeli conflict and the Iranian-Gulf conflict, saying the conflict with Israel is a conflict with a country that usurped Palestinian lands and occupied them and there is an Arab initiative to settle the problem on the land-for-peace principle, while the conflict between the Arab countries and Iran is very dangerous and is threatening the whole Islamic world because Iran uses religion as a cloak to cover up its activities.

Shoukry, meanwhile, said the two countries' viewpoints are identical in many areas, pointing out to the coordination among Arab countries to achieve joint interests.

Source : MENA