Historic Bilateral Meeting with President El-SiSi

Ethiopia’s Commitment to State of Trust and Confidence

The Ethiopian President Dr.Mulatu Teshome meets President Abdel Fatteh El SiSi of Egypt at the National President Palace in Addis.

EthiopianPresident Dr Mulatu Teshome welcomed President Abdel Fatteh El SiSi of the Arab Republic of ‪#‎Egypt‬ at the National Palace on Tuesday (March 24). President El SiSi is on a three day state visit to ‪#‎Ethiopia‬. During their discussions, President Dr. Mulatu expressed his appreciation of the effort Egypt is making to deepen the relationship between the two sisterly countries of Ethiopia and Egypt, both in general and over the issue of ensuring equitable water utilization. He mentioned, in particular, the signing of the Declaration of Principles with reference to the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) on Monday in Khartoum.

President Mulatu said this showed that by working hard we could change suspicion and misunderstanding into mutual cooperation, trust and confidence, and at the same time expand and deepen the relationship between the two nations. President El SiSi emphasized that Egyptian peoples had open minds and hearts, not just because of their historic ties and close cultural relations with the

people of Ethiopia but also because of their desire to transform relations into a state of trust and confidence. President El SiSi said that the two sides had now taken a step forward but there was still much to do in the future. President Mulatu agreed on the need to strengthen bilateral relations and build mutual trust and benefit. He stressed that Ethiopia was constructing the GERD purely for power generation. It was committed to green development and this would be beneficial for all, Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia.

He pointed out Ethiopia was concentrating on the fight against poverty and on enhancing sustainable development. Elements of this included reversing deforestation and enriching the flow of water. He underlined that Ethiopia’s processes of industrialization and green development would in fact contribute to Egypt’s share of the water of the Nile. Sustainable development, equitable utilization of the Nile waters and the signing of these would determine the destiny of the signatories. President El SiSi

welcomed President Mulatu’s comments and the reassurance of Ethiopia’s commitment to mutual benefits. He said Egypt had a clear stance: it supported Ethiopia’s Development and was ready for cooperation. This was nothing new. It was reiteration of its previous position. He welcomed the signing of the Declaration of Principles but what was most important was to advance all agreements into binding legacies for future generations, promoting integrity, and interpreting our commitment and determination on the ground.

President El SiSi said the Nile water and the GERD should not be the limit of cooperation. Ethiopian and Egypt should strengthen this in all fields to provide both sides with mutual prosperity.

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EARLIER GEESKA AFRIKA COVERAGE:

The Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam holds a bilateral Meeting with President El SiSi. Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn extended his warmest welcome to the President and his Egyptian delegation.

He said this state visit would further cement the existing relationship and cooperation between the two sisterly countries, adding that it gave the President and himself another opportunity to deepen and expand the scope of their collaboration on bilateral regional, continental and global issues.

There would be no going back, the scope of their collaboration on bilateral regional, continental and global issues

The Prime Minister underlined that ‪‎Ethiopia and ‪#Egypt had the longest histories in Africa and had established deep spiritual and social bonds linking their two peoples.

He said one indication of this was the centuries-long relationship between Ethiopia’s Orthodox Church and Egypt’s Coptic Church. Another was, of course, the indissoluble link of the River Nile which provided both countries with the basic means of life. President Abdel Fattah El-SiSi expressing his thanks for the warm hospitality accorded to him and his delegation. Noting the long-standing and strong bonds between the two countries, he said we also have to work hard to strengthen our bilateral relations and to achieve our goals.

He said Egypt and Ethiopia were approaching a new era, and there was a need to build confidence, trust and understanding. He said that a day earlier they had signed the Declaration of Principles after long debate.

This was very important for both nations but it was also the initial step in working toward a prosperous future. It was now time to consider raising their Joint Committee to a higher heads of government level. The President said Egypt would be offering complete scholarship for 50 Ethiopian students and for 150 doctors working on child cancer prevention. He also invited the Prime Minister to visit Egypt for the inaugural ceremony for the new Suez Canal to be held in August. Prime Minister Hailemariam accepted the invitation. The two leaders gave a press conference after their talks.

They agreed to strengthen cooperation in fighting terrorism, boost bilateral cooperation to raise the Joint Ministerial Committee to a higher level, to use the Declaration of Principles as the basis to deepen trilateral relations between Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan and implement their goals.

The two leaders agreed that their most important achievement was that the agreed political goodwill should be maintained for the further benefit of both nations.