Ashraf AboArafe
On September 23, Dr. Badr Abdel Aati, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Immigration and Egyptian Expatriates Affairs, met with Mr. Philemon Young, President of the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly, as a continuation of the Minister’s meetings on the sidelines of the high-level segment of the General Assembly currently being held in New York.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs congratulated Mr. Young on assuming his duties, and invited him to visit Egypt, noting the importance Egypt attaches to supporting the United Nations and its agencies and international multilateral action, and renewed Egypt’s commitment to supporting the principles and purposes of the United Nations Charter.
In this context, the Minister of Foreign Affairs welcomed the initiative of the Secretary-General of the United Nations to hold the Future Summit, stressing Egypt’s support for the summit and congratulating the President of the Assembly on the success of the summit in adopting the Future Charter. He pointed to the urgent need to enhance the credibility of the United Nations now more than ever, in light of the double standards we are witnessing in dealing with various international issues.
The discussion touched on a number of important topics that are a priority for Egypt, most notably the issue of reforming the Security Council, peacekeeping and peacebuilding operations, and ways to provide support to developing countries.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs reviewed the most prominent regional developments, most notably the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and Lebanon, warning of the danger of Israel continuing its approach that is pushing the region towards more unrest and escalation. The meeting also addressed developments in Libya, Syria, Yemen, and the Horn of Africa.
