Sudan’s Bashir due to visit Egypt on 18 October
October 9, 2014 (KHARTOUM) – Sudanese president Omer Hassan al-Bashir will pay a two-day visit to Cairo for talks with his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah al-Sisi for the first time since the fall of president Mohamed Morsi.
Abdel-Haleem said Bashir ‘s visit will give a new start to bilateral relations in all fields.
He added that talks between foreign minister Ali Karti who is in Cairo since Wednesday his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukri reflected the desire of the two countries and their full commitment to promote bilateral cooperation .
The ambassador pointed out that the two ministers agreed on the need to strengthen the institutional structures of bilateral cooperation in order to reach the desired goals.
President al-Sisi conducted a short visit to Khartoum last June when he was returning from Equatorial Guinea’s capital Malabo where attended an African Union summit.
Following the fall of the Islamist Egyptian Mohamed Morsi, Khartoum was accused of supporting and harbouring his supporters but the two countries agreed to strengthen security cooperation and to monitor the joint border.
Bilateral relations also witnessed strain due to Khartoum support to the construction of an Egyptian dam that may harm Egypt’s share of Nile water.
The two leaders are also expected to discuss the recent surge of tensions between Libyan government and Sudan. The former accused Khartoum of supporting Islamist groups in Tripoli.
SAUDI VISIT A SUCCESS
On Thursday, Bashir returned from Saudi Arabia where he performed the Hajj and held talks with the crown prince Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.
Foreign state minister -Allah Mohamed Obeid-Allah said the meeting with the crown prince and other Saudi officials were frank and provided a great opportunity for discussions on various issues and regional concerns.
Obeid-Allah further said the two parties have agreed to activate the signed bilateral agreements and the need to convene the joint ministerial committee to discuss a legal framework aiming to remove the obstacles facing Saudi investments in Sudan.
The recent rapprochement with the Saudi government comes after Sudan’s decisions to close the Iranian cultural center in Khartoum. The foreign ministry said that the center’s activities and stressed that it had exceeded its mandate and posed a threat to the intellectual and social security in Sudan.
(ST)