Egypt's foreign minister Sameh Shoukry (Photo: Ahram)
Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry told his Congolese counterpart Jean-Claude Gakosso that Egypt will not allow its national security to be jeopardised as a result of the developments in Libya, and that it will take all measures to protect its interests and national security, speaking to him in a phone call on Tuesday.
According to a statement by the Egyptian foreign ministry, the phone call comes within the framework of consultation and coordination with the Republic of the Congo, the current president of the African Union's high-level committee on Libya.
Shoukry conveyed Egypt's keenness on assisting the Libyan people to move toward a comprehensive political solution that restores stability and leaves no room for terrorist groups to influence their country and its neighbours.
The ministers discussed the ideas presented in the international arena to push a political solution forward.
"Shoukry and Gakosso agreed to keep in touch with each other in the light of the significant role played by the African Union, with the aim of achieving the solution desired by all Libyans," the statement added.
Egypt’s parliament last week approved the deployment of the country’s armed forces abroad to the national security in the “strategic western direction against the work of armed criminal militias and foreign terrorist elements.”
The decision came days after President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi warned Egypt “will not stand idle” in the face of any attack on Libya’s Sirte, which he earlier described as a “red line” for Egypt’s national security.
The oil-rich country has been split since 2014 between rival administrations in the east and west.
The eastern government is represented by the Tobruk-based House of Representatives allied with the Libyan National Army (LNA), led by Khalifa Haftar, while the west is represented by the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord (GNA).
Turkey began earlier this year sending thousands of Syrian jihadists and mercenaries into Libya to back the GNA, and Turkey-backed forces moved earlier this week close to the central city of Sirte as they vowed to capture it from Haftar’s forces.
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