BAGHDAD, May 14 (MENA) - Egyptian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Emigration and Egyptian Expatriates Badr Abdelatty reiterated on Wednesday Egypt’s active and robust participation in the 34th Arab Summit, hosted by the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, congratulating Iraq for organizing what he described as a significant summit.

Speaking to the Middle East News Agency (MENA) on the sidelines of preparatory meetings for the summit, scheduled to kick off on Saturday, the top diplomat said the summit is being held at an important timing in light of existential and pressing challenges facing the Arab world, some of which directly impact Arab security.

Abdelatty said the Palestinian issue remains the Arab world’s top priority, especially in light of the ongoing Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank and the flagrant war launched by Israel against innocent Palestinian civilians.

He also announced that a tripartite summit between Egypt, Iraq, and Jordan will be held on the sidelines of the Arab Summit. This trilateral summit, he said, will focus on joint development projects spanning sectors such as electricity, infrastructure, and interconnection.

He expressed hope that the summit would provide momentum to expedite the implementation of these projects to better serve the interest of the three brotherly countries.

Asked about Egypt’s efforts to reach a ceasefire in Gaza and facilitate a prisoner exchange, the Foreign Minister stressed that President Abdel Fattah El Sisi is leading Egyptian diplomatic moves in a wise way through his intensive contacts with world leaders and summit diplomacy to end the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip and accelerate the delivery of humanitarian aid to Palestinian civilians.

Abdelatty referred to Sisi's recent talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, during which the Palestinian file featured high. Egypt, he said, is also coordinating closely with European partners to set the scene for a high-level conference scheduled to be held in New York in mid-June as part of the two-state initiative.

Egypt and the UK will co-chair one of the working groups under this initiative, he noted.

Egypt is exerting all possible efforts with European partners to press Israel to abide by a ceasefire agreement and resume the second phase of the January 19 agreement, he said.

As part of the first stage of the Gaza ceasefire agreement, he said Egypt was able to secure the release of over 31 captives.

He also pointed to ongoing coordination with Arab and Islamic nations within the seven-member Arab-Islamic Ministerial Committee to reach an immediate ceasefire.

The top diplomat unveiled intensified Egyptian-European diplomatic contacts to push for the recognition of the Palestinian state.

It is totally unacceptable that a single state should hold veto power over the peace process and reject the principle of a two-state solution, he said.

He reiterated Egypt’s commitment to exerting all possible effort to stop the bloodshed, lift the blockade, and ensure the urgent delivery of humanitarian assistance into Gaza, especially as more than 65 days had now passed without the entry of a single aid truck, attributing this to Israel’s arbitrary policies and blatant violations of international law.

He said Egypt's cooperation with the Qatari side is going on, noting that Egypt’s cooperation with Qatar recently secured the release of an Israeli-American hostage, Aidan Alexander, an important step that would hopefully contribute to providing a positive environment conducive to a sustainable ceasefire and a return to the terms of the January 19 agreement, which Israel violated in March by resuming military operations.

On the issue of Gaza’s reconstruction, Abdelatty said Egypt is ready to launch the Cairo International Conference for Early Recovery and Reconstruction of Gaza to put into effect the Arab-Islamic recovery plan endorsed at the Arab emergency summit on March 4 once a ceasefire agreement in Gaza is reached.

He said Egypt completed all necessary preparations in coordination with the United Nations, the World Bank, and UN-affiliated agencies to ensure a well-organized conference but what remains is reaching a ceasefire agreement that would allow the conference to proceed in a constructive and positive way in a bid to rally regional and international funding for early recovery and reconstruction projects. (MENA)
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