Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi has affirmed Cairo's support for the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) during its upcoming presidency of the African Union (AU), a statement by the Egyptian presidency said on Wednesday. 

 

El-Sisi's remarks came during his meeting in Cairo with a high-level Congolese delegation headed by a special adviser to the Congolese president, in the presence of Sameh Shoukry, Egypt's Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Abbas Kamel, head of Egypt's General Intelligence. 

 

President of the DRC Félix Tshisekedi will be the chair of the AU in 2021 succeeding South African President Cyril Ramaphosa who headed the union in 2020. 

 

The Egyptian president expressed confidence in the success of President Tshisekedi in carrying out such an important policy of leading the joint African action next year. 

 

The Official Spokesperson of the Egyptian Presidency Bassam Rady said in the statement that the Congolese envoy conveyed during the meeting a message from Tshisekedi to El-Sisi, which included expressing deep appreciation for the unlimited support provided by Egypt to maintain security and stability in the DRC, and its tireless support for the DRC in all regional and international forums. 

 

Tshisekedi also hailed the distinguished friendship and fraternal ties between the two countries and expressed his aspiration for continuing to strengthen these relations at all levels, especially in the context of developmental fields, the statement stated. 

 

From his side, El-Sisi called the envoy for conveying his greetings to his brother, Congolese President Tshisekedi. 

 

El-Sisi also stressed that Egypt would continue to support the DRC at all levels in order to achieve stability, development and progress for its brotherly people, as an extension of the distinguished historical relations between the two countries, which represent a model for cooperation and joint coordination within the African continent. 

 

Rady added that the meeting tackled the development of a number of issues of common interest on the African arena, especially in light of the near handover of the AU presidency to the DRC.