Egyptian, Pakistani military officials meet in Cairo

By Hussein Mahmoud

CAIRO (AA) – Egyptian and Pakistani officials held talks in Cairo for the second day in a row on Tuesday during which they discussed a range of issues, including stepped-up cooperation in the fields of security and counter-terrorism.

"Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi and Chief-of-Staff of Pakistani Ground Forces Raheel Sharif on Tuesday discussed cooperation between the two countries in the upcoming period," read a statement issued by the Egyptian presidency.

According to the statement, the meeting was also attended by Egyptian Defense Minister Sedky Sobhy.

"Egypt looks forward to benefiting from Pakistan’s military experience in the field of counter-terrorism," al-Sisi said during the meeting, stressing the need to unify international efforts against terrorism "with a comprehensive strategy".

Sharif, for his part, said he was "proud of his country’s cooperation with Egypt, particularly in the military and security fields".

Pakistan, he added, "looks forward to further developing its military ties with Egypt and stepping up security cooperation", according to the statement issued by the presidency.

In April of last year, Sobhy visited Islamabad at the head of a high-level delegation.

While in Pakistan, the Egyptian defense minister had met with Sharif and Pakistani Military Chief-of-Staff Gen. Rashad Mahmoud.

During the visit, the two sides had discussed means of strengthening bilateral relations, particularly in the field of security, according to official statements issued at the time.