Subscribe to our social channels to get the latest news about Hungary!
Egypt needs support from EU countries, says El-Sisi in Budapest
Change language:
Egypt is in need of support from European Union countries, President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of Egypt told a press conference after meeting Visegrad Group leaders in Budapest on Tuesday.
El-Sisi thanked Visegrad Group leaders for their support. While their backing is important, the leaders of western European countries should also understand that “Egypt’s leadership respects its people and strives for development”, he said.
Egypt needs support to improve its political, economic and cultural situation rather than “being called out on human rights”, he said.
The question is whether “Europe is ready to offer brotherhood to Egypt,” by offering cooperation with its universities, and by “taking its industry there to provide jobs for Egyptians.”
Unless those needs are answered, “we cannot talk about legal standards,” he said.
The Egyptian government has “spent trillions of Egyptian pounds” in the past years on improving infrastructure and water management in rural Egypt, home to some 60 million people, he said.
On the issue of migration, el-Sisi noted that
Egypt has not allowed “a single ship transporting migrants to leave Egyptian ports” since 2016.
At the same time, the country has received some 6 million migrants from African countries and treated them as “guests … they are taught at our schools and treated in our hospitals,” he said.
Slovak Prime Minister Eduard Heger said the meeting was “further proof that Egypt was one of the most important parrtners in the Middle East”, with great impact on the region’s political and security challenges, such as the fight against terrorism and curbing migration.