Ashraf AboArafe
Mr. Dr. Badr Abdel Aati, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Immigration and Egyptian Expatriates Affairs, made a phone call on Monday, August 5, with Mr. Anthony Blinken, US Secretary of State, to consult on the ongoing escalation in the region and ways to contain it.
Ambassador Ahmed Abu Zeid, the official spokesman and director of the Public Diplomacy Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Immigration, stated that Dr. Abdel Aati briefed his American counterpart on the contacts he made with the foreign ministers of a number of countries in the region, including the foreign ministers of Iran and Lebanon, in addition to his contacts with the foreign ministers of a number of European countries with the aim of containing the ongoing escalation in the region, against the backdrop of the Israeli assassination policy and the resulting state of tension and reactions that may lead to the security situation getting out of control, and threaten to expand the scope of the conflict in an unprecedented manner.
The Foreign Minister also stressed the need for all parties to exercise self-restraint, spare the region the risks of instability and threats to the interests of its peoples, and called on his American counterpart to pressure Israel to stop practicing the brinkmanship policy, and engage seriously and with real political will in the ceasefire negotiations in Gaza.
The official spokesman added that the call touched on the position regarding the ceasefire negotiations and the Egyptian/Qatari/American efforts made in this regard, where visions and assessment were exchanged, and it was agreed to continue efforts and coordination in order to encourage the parties to reach a ceasefire agreement as soon as possible, especially since reaching such an agreement and the understandings associated with it would ease the existing regional tension and defuse the crisis.
The two ministers agreed to continue close consultation and coordination during the coming period in support of the calming efforts.
