El Orabi: Serbia, Egypt maintain excellent political relations

BELGRADE - Egypt is committed to the preservation of the sovereignty of all countries of the world and fully understands Serbia's stance on Kosovo-Metohija, especially in light of the current situation and ongoing developments in the north of the province, says Ambassador Mohamed El Orabi, who chairs the Egyptian Council for Foreign Affairs and has also served as the country's FM.

El Orabi is heading a Council delegation on a visit to Serbia marking the 115th anniversary of Serbia-Egypt diplomatic relations.

In an interview to Politika, El Orabi noted that the two countries shared a long history shaped by many factors as a result of a willingness of their political leaders to step up bilateral relations at political, economic, technical and international level.

"In view of the excellent political relations as well as their positions as key countries in their regions, Egypt and Serbia want to obtain from each other a wider perspective on the current situation in the Middle East, the Balkans, the Mediterranean and the international arena," El Orabi noted.

He said Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi's visit to Serbia last year was the most important event in the bilateral relations between the two countries in decades and that it had set a solid foundation for cooperation between numerous institutions on both sides to build and maintain a successful strategic partnership.

He added that 12 MoUs on areas including arts, culture, museums, investments, agriculture, the environment and education had been signed at the time.

He said the two countries had also begun negotiations about a free trade zone that would boost bilateral trade.