Sisi calls for ‘political settlement’ in Syrian conflict

Egyptian President Abdul-Fatteh Al-Sisi said on Wednesday that the Syrian issue must be sorted out throughout a “political settlement,” Anadolu agency reported.

Sisi’s remarks came during a press conference held with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Moscow. He said that the two leaders had discussed several “important” issues and found themselves adopting “common visions”.

According to Anadolu, both presidents “concentrated on the importance of finding a political solution for the Syrian crisis, based on the Geneva I document.”

They also stressed the importance of the Palestinian issue and the necessity for Palestinians to gain their “legitimate rights and establish their independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital.”

Regarding the situation in the Arab world, Sisi commented that: “We discussed the situation in Iraq, Yemen and the latest development in Libya. We also discussed how to face terrorism, which encounters all of us.”

He said that “the terrorism is a phenomenon that [requires us] to discuss and find real solutions, including the unity, safety and stability of affected countries.” He noted that he agreed with Putin to exchange military expertise in the fight against terrorism.

Meanwhile, Putin said Russia agreed to cooperate with Egypt in the war on terror in the light of the expansion of extremist groups such as Islamic State (ISIS), and stressed the importance of forming a wide front to combat such groups consisting of international and regional countries, including Syria.

The Geneva I agreement was reached in 2012 to solve the Syrian issue based on holding early elections and major constitutional amendments to end the crisis, but nothing has yet taken place due to differences in interpreting the articles of the agreement.