<h6><strong>Eduardo González</strong></h6> <h4><strong>The Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, was received this Wednesday in Cairo by his Egyptian counterpart, Badr Abdelatty, before whom he defended “a peaceful and negotiated solution” for the Middle East “against those who prefer war”.</strong></h4> “Egypt is a key partner, friend and fundamental ally in the Mediterranean and a key player in the Middle East and Africa,” declared the minister during the joint press conference after meeting with Abdelatty. “We always take the opportunity to address the shared neighbourhood to think of a solution for the Middle East in a peaceful and negotiated way, in contrast to those who prefer war and do not want to sit at the negotiating table,” he added. “Military force never guarantees anyone's security” and the only possible solution to the crisis is “a ceasefire and the two-state solution,” insisted Albares. “We all know that in the end the definitive peace that guarantees security for everyone, including Israel, is to have a viable and credible Palestinian State,” he warned. Albares is in Cairo on the occasion of a two-day official trip to Egypt. At the meeting on Thursday, the two ministers addressed issues such as Spanish investments in the country, migration, water security and, obviously, and as a central theme, the Israeli invasion of Gaza and Lebanon. Albares is expected to be received tomorrow, Thursday, by the President of Egypt, Abdelfatah Al Sisi, before returning to Spain. This is Albares' second visit to Cairo since the one he made in mid-March, when he met with the former Egyptian Foreign Minister, Sameh Shoukry. For his part, Badr Abdelatty travelled to the Spanish capital on 13 September on the occasion of the 'Madrid Meeting: for the implementation of two States', in which the European Union, members of the Arab-Islamic Contact Group on Gaza and the European countries that have recognised the State of Palestine participated. For his part, Abdelatty warned that "there can be no security or stability in the region without the establishment of a Palestinian State" and, for that reason, he praised Spain's position regarding the Middle East conflict, thanks to which it has won the goodwill of the vast majority of Arab and Islamic countries." Instead, the minister regretted the lack of unity on the part of the EU states and the lukewarmness of some of them when it comes to criticising Israel for its actions and the “double standards” of Europe compared to other world crises. “The European division on this issue sends the wrong messages to Israel and to our public opinion”, which “prevents drastic and real measures from being taken to end Israel’s systematic aggression” and can even be “interpreted as a blank cheque for them to continue with them”. The Egyptian minister denounced the displacement of Palestinians from the West Bank and the use of hunger by Israel as a tool of collective punishment against the Palestinians, warned of the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, demanded an “urgent” end to the Israeli aggression against Lebanon and stressed the importance of strengthening Lebanese national institutions, in particular the Lebanese Army, since it is the entity capable of guaranteeing the stability of the country. Following their bilateral meeting, the ministers participated in the presentation of the UN Women project ‘Leadership of Egyptian women in the observance of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325’, which has been funded with 400,000 euros and is carried out in collaboration with the National Council of Women, the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Cairo International Centre for Conflict Resolution, Peacekeeping and Peacebuilding.
