in a phone call with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi on Monday Russian President Vladimir Putin praised the diplomatic efforts Egypt has been exerting to solve the Libyan crisis.

The two presidents discussed in detail the latest developments in the Libyan crisis, according to a statement by Egyptian Presidency Spokesman Bassam Rady.

President El-Sisi briefed Putin on Egypt’s strategic stance towards the crisis in Libya, which was embodied in the “Cairo Declaration” initiative which presents a comprehensive solution to the crisis under the Egyptian auspices, Rady said.

“Egypt’s initiative was consistent with the various international efforts exerted for ending the crisis, especially with regard to preserving Libyan national institutions, and undermining illegal foreign interventions in Libya, which only lead to fuelling the crisis and negatively affect the security and stability of the entire Middle East,” Rady added.

President Putin applauded during the phone call the Egyptian initiative and the diplomatic efforts exerted by Egypt to solve the Libyan crisis, the Kremlin said in a statement on Monday.

According to Rady, Putin praised the "Cairo Declaration" especially in terms of the timing of its launch, and its comprehensive framework which offers an integrated and constructive settlement to the crisis.

The initiative, Putin asserted, gives momentum to the political process in Libya, and establishes Egypt's role as a pillar for security and stability in the region, Rady added.

Rady added that the two presidents tackled other topics on cooperation between the two countries including El-Dabaa nuclear power plant and the Russian industrial zone at the Suez Canal axis, in addition to joint security cooperation and combating terrorism.

President El-Sisi, Commander of the Libyan National Army (LNA) Khalifa Haftar, and Libya's Parliament Speaker Aguila Saleh announced on Saturday a new joint political initiative, dubbed the Cairo Declaration, aimed at ending the conflict in Libya. 

The initiative mandates a Libyan-Libyan resolution as a basis for resolving the country’s conflict under resolutions by the UN and past efforts in Paris, Rome, Abu Dhabi, and most recently in Berlin.

Several Arab and Western powers welcomed the initiative including the United States, UAE, and Saudi Arabia.

The Cairo plan came after the collapse of an offensive launched by Haftar in April 2019 to capture the Libyan capital, further extending the Government of National Accord’s (GNA) control of most of northwest Libya.

Egypt, the UAE and Russia are backing Haftar, while Turkey supports the GNA.