On Monday, 19 September, President Abdel Fattah El Sisi met with a number of prominent and influential U.S. figures from different domains, including former political and military officials and leaders of U.S. think tanks.

According to a statement released by the Office of the Presidency, during the meeting President El Sisi “emphasized the importance of the strategic relations between Egypt and the U.S. as well as Egypt’s keenness on enhancing them to serve both countries’ national security interest. President El Sisi gave an overview of domestic developments over the past few years.”

President El Sisi also “explained that the multiple crises in the Middle East and the fertile ground they create for terrorism to proliferate pose a challenge to Egypt’s development endeavors” and “highlighted the success of counter-terrorism efforts to besiege terrorists in a limited area in northern Sinai.”

Also on Monday, President El Sisi met with Congressman Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA) and Congressman James French Hill (R-AR). According to a statement released by the Office of the Presidency, President El Sisi “expressed his appreciation for Congressman Rohrabacher’s efforts to strengthen and further advance the strategic relations between Egypt and the US. He also emphasized Egypt’s commitment to enhancing cooperation between the two countries across a range of fields to enable them to confront common challenges, primarily the growing threat of terrorism.”

For more information, see the below releases from the Office of the Presidency.

President El Sisi Meets Prominent US Figures

President Abdel Fattah El Sisi met on Monday in New York with a number of prominent and influential US figures from different domains, including former political and military officials and leaders of US think tanks.

The President acknowledged their role in shaping the direction of the decision-making process on issues that affect US national security, particularly US interests in the Middle East. He emphasized the importance of the strategic relations between Egypt and the US as well as Egypt’s keenness on enhancing them to serve both countries’ national security interest. President El Sisi gave an overview of domestic developments over the past few years. He noted that Egypt’s policy since the June 30revolution has been based on balance and serious engagement with various US decision makers, particularly the current US administration which is in the last year of its term. This has been demonstrated by the exchange of visits at the political and military levels.

President El Sisi highlighted the completion of the milestones of the “Roadmap for the Future” by forming the House of Representatives, which includes the highest percentage of women and youth representation in Egypt’s parliamentary history. The President outlined Egypt’s economic reform program and “Vision 2030” for comprehensive, sustainable development. Both the reform program and the vision address budget imbalances. The President also showcased national projects currently being implemented, particularly in the field of infrastructure, in order to create a climate conducive to foreign investment.

On the impact of the region’s situation on development efforts, the President explained that the multiple crises in the Middle East and the fertile ground they create for terrorism to proliferate pose a challenge to Egypt’s development endeavors. He highlighted the success of counter-terrorism efforts to besiege terrorists in a limited area in northern Sinai. President El Sisi affirmed that the establishment of a civic, democratic and economically prosperous state can only be achieved by restoring security and stability throughout the country. The President also touched on Egypt’s efforts to revive the peace process and noted that Egypt supports all international efforts and initiatives aimed at reaching a just and comprehensive settlement to this issue, in line with Arab fundamental principles.

The President responded to inquiries about the nature of the economic reforms that Egypt is implementing within the context of the agreement reached with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). President El Sisi noted that the government is determined to take comprehensive measures to address structural imbalances in the Egyptian economy. He added that this required making hard decisions, mainly reducing subsidies gradually while dealing with the negative implications of the economic reforms on citizens, especially the economically disadvantaged brackets, by strengthening social protection networks.

On Egypt’s efforts to rectify the religious discourse, the President pointed out the important role played by Egyptian religious institutions, primarily Al-Azhar, in this regard. He noted that achieving a tangible outcome in this process and changing misconceptions require time. The President added that Egypt is taking steadfast steps to entrench the rights of citizenship and national unity, and highlighted the endorsement of the long-awaited law on the construction of churches.

On ways to address regional crises, primarily in Libya and Syria, the President affirmed that when pressure mounts on extremists in Syria and Iraq, they move to Libya. He warned against the repercussion of limiting the fight on terrorists in Syria and Iraq without including Libya. President El Sisi affirmed Egypt’s keenness on seeing the political process succeed in Libya, and stressed the importance of preserving the legitimate Libyan institutions and enabling the Libyan army to undertake its responsibilities and restore stability. On the situation in Syria, the President stressed the importance of the US-Russian understanding and confirmed the need for flexibility by regional parties that have direct interest to find a settlement.

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President El Sisi Meets Congressmen Rohrabacher and Hill

President Abdel Fattah El Sisi met on Monday in New York with Congressman and co-chair of the “Friends of Egypt” Caucus in Congress, Dana Rohrabacher, and Congressman James French Hill, who is member of the House Financial Services Committee.

President El Sisi expressed his appreciation for Congressman Rohrabacher’s efforts to strengthen and further advance the strategic relations between Egypt and the US. He also emphasized Egypt’s commitment to enhancing cooperation between the two countries across a range of fields to enable them to confront common challenges, primarily the growing threat of terrorism. President El Sisi stated that Egyptian-US relations are robust and cover a wide range of cooperation fields. He underscored the importance of the two countries’ military cooperation as one of the key aspects of their relations.

Congressmen Rohrabacher and Hill commended Egypt’s measures to realize economic development as well as its efforts to combat terrorism and enforce security and stability at the regional and international levels. They reiterated the longstanding and steadfast strategic relations between Egypt and the US and underscored the need to strengthen the ongoing partnership between the two countries in various areas.

President El Sisi reviewed overall developments in Egypt. He highlighted the successful completion of the milestones of the “Roadmap for the Future”, the Egyptian government’s ambitious economic reform program, as well as the initial agreement reached with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to support this program.

The meeting also addressed ways to enhance bilateral relations. Congressmen Rohrabacher and Hill confirmed that they will continue to support Egypt and back its fight against terrorism.

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