Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry received on Monday, April 20, Libyan Vice President Ahmed Maiteeq, who is currently visiting Cairo as part of efforts to reach a settlement to the Libyan issue.
Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Ahmed Abu Zeid said that the vice president of the Libyan Presidential Council expressed his sincere condolences to the government and people of Egypt and the victims of the terrorist attacks that targeted Tanta's St George Church and Alexandria's St Mark's Cathedral. He stressed in this regard that the forces of extremism and terrorism will not succeed in undermining Egypt's national identity and its pivotal role in the Middle East region, noting the need to intensify international coordination to confront terrorism and extremism.
On his part, Shoukry stressed that the Egyptian state will not be dissuaded from taking the necessary measures to protect the path chosen by the Egyptian people through their will and their deep historical awareness, stressing the need for the international community to unite against terrorism on the basis of a comprehensive and integrated perspective and to adopt a firm approach to confront terrorist organizations.
Regarding the Libyan crisis, the spokesperson pointed out that Maiteeq praised the Egyptian role in enabling the Libyan parties to reach a settlement that ends the crisis in Libya. He also briefed Shoukry on the latest developments in the Libyan arena, especially economic developments, stressing the need for progress on the economic front in parallel with the political track to contribute to development and achieve decent living standards for Libyan citizens.
In this context, Shoukry stressed the necessity of working to achieve security and political stability in Libya through national reconciliation among the various Libyan parties based on the Skhirat agreement. He also emphasized in this regard Egypt's aspiration to complete the institutional structure of the Libyan state and to provide constitutional support to the Government of National Reconciliation to allow it to carry out its tasks and to manage Libyan state institutions efficiently in order to fulfill the aspirations and ambitions of the brotherly Libyan people.