President Mubarak confers with Cohen

US Defense Secretary William Cohen on Thursday in Cairo announced following his meeting with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak that he discussed with the Egyptian president the situation in Iraq and the Middle East peace process and means of giving it a push forward.

In a statement to reporters Cohen added that the US troops will stay in the Gulf with the objective of preserving what he called the stability of the region. Earlier in the day, President Mubarak met with Cohen, currently visiting Egypt. Present at the meeting were Egyptian Defense Minister Hassan Tantawi and the US ambassador in Cairo, Daniel Kurtzer.