Egypt's FM to visit Syria for 1st time in decade: Official
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Egypt's Foreign Minister is heading to Turkey and Syria Monday morning, for the first such visit in a decade of tense relations with both countries.
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Sameh Shoukry, Egypt Foreign Minister and COP27 president, speaks during an interview with The Associated Press at the COP27 U.N. Climate Summit, Thursday, Nov. 10, 2022, in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. (AP)
"Egypt's Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry will travel Monday morning to both Syria and Turkey," according to the official spokesman for the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ahmed Abu Zeid.
This visit aims to convey a message of "solidarity with the two countries and their brotherly peoples, following the disastrous earthquake that left heavy losses in both countries," Abu Zeid explained.
"The Egyptian foreign minister will visit Damascus tomorrow, Monday, in the first visit since 2011," Reuters said, quoting a Syrian government source.
During his upcoming meetings in Syria and Turkey, the Egyptian Foreign Minister is expected to confirm Egypt's constant readiness to provide aid and assistance to the affected people in the two countries' affected areas, and that "Egypt, government, and people, cannot be late for a day in supporting its brothers."
It is worth noting that Syrian-Arab relations have been improving after the tragic February 6 earthquake, which prompted countries in the region to send quantities of aid to Damascus.
Following the earthquake, Egypt sent five military planes loaded with emergency medical aid destined to assist rescuers in Syria and Turkey in treating the wounded from the powerful earthquake.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi has likewise expressed his condolences to the victims in two separate phone calls with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad, the conversation with the latter being the first since Al-Sisi assumed the presidency in 2014.
On another note, a delegation of senior Arab officials, which include parliament speakers and legislators, landed in Damascus on Sunday, as part of a framework intended to restore the country's membership in the Arab League.
The Speaker of Egypt’s House of Representatives Hanafy el-Gebaly said, "We are here in Damascus to show our support for the brotherly nation of Syria, and demonstrate our solidarity with it in the aftermath of the devastating [February 6] earthquake."
Read: Int'l, Arab leaders offer Syria condolences over losses in earthquake
