EU's Ashton arrives in Cairo for election talks
Ahram Online , Thursday 10 Apr 2014
Catherine Ashton arrives in Cairo for talks with government officials and presidential candidates ahead of forthcoming poll


European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton arrived in Cairo on Wednesdayas part of a two-day visit ahead of a decisive presidential election.

The European diplomat met Interim President Adly Mansour and Foreign Minister Nabil Fahmy Thursday afternoon to discuss the country's upcoming presidential elections, a major political milestone scheduled for late May.

Fahmy and Ashton discussed Egypt-EU ties as well as visions for political, economic and trade cooperation, the foreign ministry said in a statement Thursday.

The meeting also tackled international and regional issues including Israeli-Palestinian reconciliation against the backdrop of an impromptu Arab League meeting Wednesday on Middle East peace talks, Iran's nuclear programme and the Syrian conflict, the deadliest among recent Arab uprisings.

"I will surely be returning to Egypt as it prepares for presidential elections," Ashton told the European Parliament last week.

Ashton is also expected to hold talks with presidential hopefuls: resigned army chief Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi and Nasserist political figure Hamdeen Sabahi, a diplomatic source told state news agency MENA on Wednesday.

"We want to see good candidates coming forward so that the Egyptian people have a good choice," she told Ahram Online on Monday.

"We already see at least two candidates. We also want to see that this election is part of an inclusive process so that the people of Egypt can move forward together towards real economic and political opportunities for this great nation," Ashton added.

The senior diplomat has repeatedly urged Egypt to adopt an inclusive democratic process that engages all factions. She has voiced alarm over the use of violence against Islamists and the deepening polarisation gripping the country since the ouster of Islamist president Mohamed Morsi last summer.

"It is extremely important that Egypt brings people who believe in a democratic future to work together," Ashton said, adding that anyone who adopts violence must be stopped and condemned.

Hundreds of Islamists have been killed and thousands incarcerated in a broad crackdown on Islamists since Morsi's removal. Islamist militants have stepped up attacks against police and army targets, killing almost 500, mostly policemen and troops, in shootings, bombings and suicide attacks in recent months.

Ashton's visit is the fourth since Morsi's overthrow in July 2013 on the back of mass protests against his single year in power.

During an earlier visit, she met the Islamist leader, the country's first freely elected president, at an undisclosed location where he had been held since his overthrow. She also held talks with political figures, including leaders of Morsi's now-banned Muslim Brotherhood group.

https://english.ahram.org.eg/News/98703.aspx