Mubarak, Aznar hold joint press conference
Egypt-Spain, Politics, 5/31/2000

Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak yesterday had intensive talks with Spanish Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar. The talks focused on ways of boosting political and economic relations binding the two countries.

Talks also dealt with the developments of the peace process and Mediterranean issue. Following the talks, the President and the Spanish Prime Minister held a press conference.

In the press conference, President Mubarak underscored the importance of the talks he had earlier in the day with Prime Minister Aznar.

He said an agreement was reached to intensify contacts between the Egyptian and Spanish governments with the aim of stepping up the volume of trade exchange and promoting cooperation in the economic and cultural fields between Cairo and Madrid.

"The Egyptian People's Assembly will ratify this week a protocol for bilateral cooperation," the President said, underlining the need for the two countries to bolster cooperation between them in the diverse domains.

Mubarak termed Egyptian-Spanish relations as 'deeply-rooted'. "Spain is a friendly country and ways to enhance ties between Egypt and Spain were probed during this visit," the President pointed out.

Addressing the conference, Aznar said Egypt and Spain share identical views towards security cooperation, especially in the terrorism combat domain.

Madrid has shown sincere readiness to cooperate with Egypt in fighting this dangerous phenomenon as well as cooperation between the Egyptian and Spanish armed forces.

"Spain and Egypt are debating the signing of an agreement on the prevention of dual taxation and to step up bilateral cooperation in technological and scientific areas," Aznar added.

"Egypt and Spain have agreed to give an impetus to efforts exerted to push forward the peace march in the Middle East," he added, stressing the need to maintain a progress on all tracks of the peace drive.

He termed as "very important" the development, which took place in peacemaking, affirming Madrid's keenness on activating t.

"Egyptian-Spanish talks took up the present situation in the Mediterranean countries," he said, referring to Madrid's initiation of the Barcelona process and keenness to complete it.

The Premier underlined the significance of Mubarak's visit to his country, which he said provided a good chance to advance bilateral cooperation at the Middle East and Euro-Mediterranean levels.

On promoting cooperation between Cairo and Madrid, Aznar said the joint higher committee would discuss this question in detail with emphasis on ways to further joint projects.

Peace March

President Mubarak said talks dwelt on activation of the peace march, shedding light on the need to endeavor to bring about a just and all-out peace in the region.

The President likewise accentuated the importance of deepening and enhancing cooperation with Spain as soon as possible.

On his part, Aznar said his talks with the President covered bilateral ties and ways to foster them along with ways to propel the peace drive in the region.

Aznar termed as "important" Egyptian-Spanish relations which he said were reinforced by mutual confidence.

"The Egyptian-Spanish committee will convene in January," he said, noting that the Spanish Foreign Minister would pay a visit to Egypt within the coming weeks.

Train Project

Aznar said his government agreed to start the feasibility study of the high-speed train project, which is to connect Alexandria with Aswan, adding that he discussed also with President Mubarak economic ties between the two countries, especially with regard to ventures aiming to export Egyptian natural gas to Spain.

Mediterranean Security

On Mediterranean security, Mubarak has made it clear that Egypt has been calling since 1995 for ridding the region of weapons of mass destruction . "Egypt also called for making the region free from chemical and biological weapons," the President said, stressing that this issue was very crucial for regional security.

Mubarak warned against failing to respond to his country's initiative, saying that one of the countries might attempt to protect itself and start adopting a nuclear armament program which would in turn endanger the region.

The President reiterated his view that removing these fatal weapons would contribute to achieving stability in the region.

He called for convening a conference under the UN umbrella to discuss the issue of removing nuclear weapons.

He referred to the outcome of the latest NPT Review Conference held in New York, which named Israel for the first time and urged it to ratify and join the NPT. "The world public opinion does not accept the current situation," he added.

As for the issue of nuclear armament, Mubarak said it could possibly become an "infection", adding that no one knew what the future held.

Aznar spelt out his country's support for a Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) and voiced his country's support for President Mubarak's viewpoint in this respect.

Middle East Peace Process

On the critical phase facing the peace march in the region, President Mubarak termed the peacemaking as a complicated process.

During his talks with Aznar, the President stressed the need for Israel to commit to sign agreements with the Palestinian side so as to spare the Palestinian people frustration.

President Mubarak said he asked Israel to complete the third phase of negotiations as scheduled so as not to cause frustration.

"Syrian President Hafez Al-Assad will never give up an inch of his lands," the President said when asked about the Syrian track. He added that he had informed the Israelis of this fact.

Mubarak cited Egypt's experience in dealing with the Taba issue, affirming that lands could not be ceded at all.

The President termed as "good" Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon, voicing hope that other steps would be taken on the road of realizing stability and overall peace in the region.

On his part, Aznar expressed his support for what President Mubarak said.

"There is a pressing need for permanent peace and stability," he said. The Premier praised Egypt's role in this regard, saying his country specifically appreciated Egypt's historical role in this connection.

At the same time, he referred to his country's role in the peace process, describing it as "effective", stressing Spain's concern for realizing stability and peace in the region.

Aznar described the Israeli pullout from southern Lebanon as "positive".

He further said that it is necessary to implement all agreements, adding that he emphasized this during the meeting he held several days ago with Palestinian Leader Yasser Arafat.

"Any slackness in implementation harms the credibility of the lax party," the Premier stressed.

He also underlined the importance of maintaining intensive efforts until a final decision was reached, expressing his support for Mubarak's moves aiming to push forward efforts on the Israeli-Syrian track.

On whether the talks touched on the situation in Iraq, President Mubarak said the issue was discussed, stressing the importance of implementing the relevant Security Council resolutions in order to alleviate the suffering of the Iraqi people, now in its tenth year.

He added that he examined the issue during his latest visit to the US and everywhere he went to, expressing his hope for reaching a new method for resolving the crisis.

Meanwhile, Aznar emphasized his country's commitment to the Security Council resolution concerning the Iraqi crisis.

Mubarak stressed that Egypt, because of its location and history, was working hard to ease the tension in the Middle East and would remain to do so in the future.

Asked whether a Palestinian state would be declared in September, Mubarak said, addressing Israel, that dealing with a state was better than dealing with separate factions, and that a Palestinian state would be for the good of Israel.

Aznar said he agreed with Mubarak's view and referred to the necessity of laying down security frameworks and specifying responsibilities.

Previous Stories:
  Mubarak heralds Spain's peace efforts during a meeting with parliament speakers   (5/30/2000)
  Egypt, Spain enjoy excellent ties   (5/30/2000)
  El Mundo highlights Mubarak's visit to Spain   (5/29/2000)

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