Today, President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi met with President of Algeria, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, on the sidelines of his participation in the Arab Summit in the capital, Algiers.

The Spokesman for the Presidency said President El-Sisi congratulated the Algerian President on the occasion of the Independence Day of Algeria, and expressed sincere appreciation for the warm reception and hospitality he received. The President valued the outstanding levels of the two countries’ bilateral relations, stressing Egypt’s commitment to further advancing cooperation across all areas and to promoting them toward broader prospects, in keeping with the profound fraternal bonds between the two countries and their peoples.

President Tebboune welcomed President El-Sisi in Algeria, confirming that his country values the firm and special relations it shares with Egypt at both the official and popular levels. He emphasized his country’s interest to work intensively to explore new prospects of joint cooperation in an array of fields. The Algerian President commended Egypt’s achievements domestically over the past years, under the leadership of President El-Sisi, in the areas of security, stability and development.

The meeting discussed ways to foster closer bilateral relations. The two sides confirmed the importance of further advancing the levels of cooperation and coordination, thus strengthen efforts to bolster their bilateral partnership.

The two Presidents confirmed the need to work toward boosting economic and trade relations, to be commensurate with the special political ties, and to step-up closer military and information cooperation and coordination between the two sides. This is, in addition to enhancing joint efforts in the fight against terrorism, in light of the various security challenges imposed by the latest regional developments, particularly in the Sahel and Sahara region.

As to the most prominent issues on the agenda of the current Arab Summit, President El-Sisi underscored Egypt’s position in support of the Algerian chairmanship of the summit so to strengthen the mechanisms of joint Arab action and serve Arab interests, particularly as the region is currently facing unprecedented and formidable challenges. President El-Sisi expressed hope that the Algeria Summit would come up with recommendations and serious visions that would crown joint efforts exerted under the umbrella of the Arab League, and contribute to enhancing its role in settling the various crises in the region.

The two leaders agreed on the importance of fostering closer cooperation and coordination between Egypt and Algeria with regard to all regional issues of mutual interest, particularly the Libyan crisis. They shared common visions regarding the need to work toward achieving security and stability, and preserving the territorial integrity, unity and sovereignty of Libya. President El-Sisi and President Tebboune agreed on the need to push for holding presidential and parliamentary elections at the earliest time. They also reiterated the need to preserve the Libyan national institutions, enhance the role of the security authorities to combat terrorism and extremist groups, and boost international efforts to expel all foreign forces and mercenaries from Libyan territories.