Egypt s FM Sameh Shoukry and his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba
In a phone call on Thursday, Shoukry and Kuleba shared the latest humanitarian and field developments in Ukraine and the course of talks between Russia and Ukraine, a statement by the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs read.
Cairo and Kyiv enjoy distingushed economic relations, with Egypt importing 30 percent of its wheat needs from the Ukraine before the outbreak of Russian-Ukrainian war.
In a tweet after speaking to Shoukry, Kuleba wrote: "Call with Egyptian FM Sameh Shoukry on bilateral & UN cooperation. Ukraine is ready to remain a reliable supplier of agricultural goods to Egypt & other countries, but Russia must cease hostilities to restore supply chains. Grateful for taking care of Ukrainian citizens in Egypt."
After the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Egypt paid for thousands of Ukrainian tourists in the country to stay in hotels until they are able to return home.
Meanwhile, the Ukrainian authorities facilitated the evacuation of hundreds of Egyptian nationals who were studying or living in the Ukraine at the time of the invasion.
During the call, Egypt's top diplomat briefed his Ukrainian counterpart on the outcome of the emergency meeting the Arab League (AL) held upon Egypt’s request to debate the crisis.
During the AL meeting, held in late February at the level of permanent delegates, Secretary-General Ahmed Abul-Gheit said the crisis should be resolved without resorting to military force.
Abul-Gheit warned of the "sad and high costs" of wars, calling for engaging in serious international action to put an end to the current crisis politically and diplomatically in a way that leads to restoring stability.
In early March, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi voiced in a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin Egypt's readiness to support the diplomatic endeavours that would facilitate reaching a political settlement between Russia and Ukraine to end the conflict and preserve international security and stability.
Egypt was among the 141 countries that voted for a UN resolution at the General Assembly calling for a halt to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and an immediate withdrawal of Russian forces from its western neighbour in early March.
Egypt called at the General Assembly for a quick political solution to the Russia-Ukraine crisis through peaceful means, warning of the impact of the crisis on the fragile global economy.
Egypt also warned against economic sanctions that are not based on the mechanisms of the multilateral international system.
The Russia-Ukraine conflict, which started with the Russian invasion of Ukraine on 24 February, has so far claimed dozens of lives of Ukrainians and Russians, according to both countries' officials.
More than 3.5 million Ukrainians have fled the country to neighbouring countries as the Russian military continues its advance on Ukrainian cities.
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