12/25/2011

Mohamed Amr: An Egyptian wouldn't attain dignity in his homeland if he can not attain it at the Egyptian embassies.

Foreign Minister, Mohamed Amr met on Sunday 25th December 2011 with students of the Military Academy, where he gave a lecture on the most important features of Egypt's foreign policy in the wake of the January 25th Revolution and its relation with the interior situation in the country.

Spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Counsellor Amr Roshdi stated that the Ministry is proud to cooperate with the Military Academy, being one of the well-established institutions in Egypt.

The Minister ascertained that despite the current obstacles facing Egypt, the Egyptian people would certainly surpass this crucial phase and establish elected democratic institutions through fair popular will, thus achieving all the goals of the Egyptian revolution. He outlined that despite not receiving all the promised economic assistance yet, Egypt's strength stems from its human resources and the resolve of its citizens.

Foreign Minister affirmed that the January Revolution was a true impetus to the Egyptian foreign policy, and boosted Egypt's capability to restore the status and regional role it deserves. Minister Amr demonstrated the Egyptian policy basics, on top of which are preserving the national security and defending the Egyptian interests abroad in all political and economic fields, most important of such interests are the citizens' dignity and rights abroad. The Minister affirmed the Egyptian citizen wouldn't attain dignity within his native country if not attaining it at the Egyptian embassies abroad. In this context, the Minister pointed to the efforts exerted by the Egyptian embassies and consulates in the first and second phases of the parliamentary elections to empower Egyptians abroad to participate in the voting process on equal footing with their fellow citizens.

The Foreign Minister pinpointed the Ministry's demarche towards boosting Egypt's links with Africa, as his visiting Ethiopia immediately after assuming office. He would also visit the Sudan in early January 2012, and then make a tour to the Nile Basin states to conclude with participating in the African Summit in Addis Ababa. Such intensive efforts show the importance Egypt attaches to Africa in its foreign policy, especially that the January Revolution imposed comprehensive review and reordering of the Egyptian interests' priorities. Egypt's interest in the Nile Basin countries is not out of compulsion, but of conviction that the close relations with these states are a reality dictated by history rather than by geography. The history of Egypt had ever been eternally mingled with that of the African states making both sides exert all possible efforts to maintain and boost those relations and expand them into all fields.

Furthermore, the Foreign Minister addressed Egypt's role in reaching a peaceful solution to the Syrian crisis through the Arab Initiative and evading foreign intervention, as well as Egypt's efforts to help the brothers in Libya stabilize and re-establish the state institutions in the various fields according to their own priorities, pointing out that the Egyptian Foreign Minister was the first Arab official to visit Tripoli after the fall of Gaddafi.

Minister Amr also tackled his recent visit to Algeria, stressing that there is a genuine desire in the two countries to overcome the crisis with their bilateral relations and restore the atmosphere of brotherhood and interdependence, firmly established by the Algerian Revolution and the glorious October War, in order to stand steadfast in the face of any political fluctuations or storms.

The Foreign Minister concluded his speech affirming his strong optimism about Egypt's future, stressing that history wouldn't return back, after Egyptian's had spurred their country on a new era of freedom, dignity and social justice.