Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi highlighted that Egypt's vision for the crisis in Sudan revolves around achieving an immediate, permanent, and comprehensive ceasefire and rejecting any external intervention in Sudan's affairs.
El-Sisi's remarks came during a press conference on Sunday with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in Cairo.
The Egyptian president said that external parties must refrain from intervening in the Sudanese conflict, the crisis in Sudan being a purely Sudanese matter.
Such abstention, El-Sisi added, helps defuse the crisis and prevents its exacerbation.
"The Egyptian vision is based on achieving an immediate, permanent, and comprehensive ceasefire in Sudan,” he explained.
For his part, Kishida voiced concerns over the possible impact on Japan and the global economy of the Sudanese crisis.
“The turbulent situation in Sudan may affect Japan and the global economy as Sudan overlooks the Red Sea, one of the most prominent logistical lifelines between Asia and Europe,” he warned.
As the current chair of the Group of Seven (G7) and a member of the UN Security Council, Japan plans to address the crisis in Sudan, the premier said.
Therefore, Japan will soon send its envoy for the Horn of Africa to relevant countries, including Egypt, Kishida added.
Russia-Ukraine crisis
El-Sisi stressed that the crisis in Ukraine had a severe impact on the economies of developing countries, causing a rise in inflation and energy and food prices, along with expectations of a slowdown in growth rates.
Egypt looks forward to working with its development partners, especially Japan, to ensure that the economic challenges resulting from the Ukraine crisis are given the same attention as its political and security aspects, he said.
The president also called for discussing means of alleviating the impact of such exceptional challenges on developing countries.
For his part, Japan’s PM said his country has been keen to support agricultural production in Egypt by providing financial aid to enhance food security amid the Russia-Ukraine war.
North Korea, int’l issues
Kishida said he agreed with El-Sisi to continue coordination between the two countries on North Korea's nuclear arsenal and its abduction of Japanese civilians.
He also expressed concerns about tensions between the Israelis and Palestinians, hailing at the same time Egypt’s efforts to reduce these tensions.
The Japanese PM praised Egypt’s “important” role in achieving stability in the Middle East and Africa.
Both leaders said they also discussed the situation in East Asia.
Boosting cooperation
Kishida said he agreed with El-Sisi on the need to boost the relations between the two countries to the level of strategic partnership.
“Egypt and Japan are no longer partners on the bilateral level only but also on the regional and international levels,” he stated, adding that Japan will work with El-Sisi to help achieve peace, stability, and prosperity for the international community.
The two leaders also discussed holding the 3rd Japan-Arab Political Dialogue in September and promoting trilateral cooperation between Egypt, Japan and Jordan.
Japan also plans to increase its contribution to the Multinational Force and Observers (MFO) mission in Sinai, according to the Japanese PM.
During their meeting, El-Sisi and Kishida discussed the promising investment opportunities in Egypt.
El-Sisi said he called on the Japanese government to encourage companies in Japan to increase their investments in Egypt.
Japan will provide long-term assistance in various fields to Egypt, Kishida said.
He cited its contributions to various projects in Egypt, such as Cairo Metro Line 4 and the wind power project, as well as its assistance to Egypt in the field of education,
Kishida arrived in Egypt on Saturday for a three-day visit as part of his four-nation Africa tour. This is his first visit to the region since assuming office in October 2021.
El-Sisi and Kishida witnessed the signing of several MoUs and agreements between Egypt and Japan in communication and information technology, law and the judiciary.
The two sides also signed an agreement on the first phase of the fourth metro line in Egypt.
The two countries also agreed on establishing a partnership between the Egyptian Ministry of International Cooperation and the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC).