Sharm El Sheikh, 17 November 2022 (TDI): Federal Minister for Planning, Development, and Special Initiatives of Pakistan, Ahsan Iqbal held a meeting with his Egyptian counterpart Hala El-Said.
The meeting took place on the fringes of the 27th session of the Conference of the State Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change aka COP27.
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Both officials discussed matters of mutual interests and international development. The Egyptian Minister highlighted the significance of COP27.
In this vein, she said that it is one of the largest events in terms of participation compared to the previous conferences hosted by Egypt. El-Said enunciated the positive developments in bilateral relations between Egypt and Pakistan during 2021.
At his turn, Pakistan’s Minister of Planning noted that climate threat had rapidly turned into a new reality. It is not about North or South, it’s about us.
Talking about the severity of the Climate Crisis, Ahsan Iqbal added that the events induced by climate change are creating problems for developing countries.
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“Pakistan is amongst the most vulnerable segment of society that has been affected by Climate-induced floods.” Foreign Minister highlighted.
In this vein, he appreciated the efforts of the government of Pakistan and stated that “The government is working on a resilient recovery, rehabilitation, and reconstruction (4R) strategy to build better adaptability for mitigating the impacts of future disasters.”
Both the Ministers deliberated upon the problems being faced by the developing world and agreed to share expertise in resolving such problems while benefiting from each other’s experiences.
Pakistan-Egypt bilateral relations
The historic, cultural, and traditional relations between Pakistan and Egypt date back to the 1940s when both countries achieved freedom.
Egypt has an Embassy in Islamabad and Pakistan has an Embassy in Cairo. Both countries are members of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the Developing-8 (D8).
Moreover, the Pakistani and Egyptian military maintains close relations in the fields of defense production. It is pertinent to mention here that both countries are designated Major Non-NATO allies.
Pakistan and Egypt commemorated the Pak-Egypt 75th Friendship anniversary in July 2022. The event was hosted by Tarek Dahroug, the Ambassador of Egypt to Pakistan.
