Kerry in Cairo to discuss mutual and regional issues

US Secretary of State John Kerry arrived on Wednesday afternoon to Cairo for a one-day visit to meet his Egyptian counterpart and the Egyptian president to discuss mutual and regional issues, Anadolu reported.

Diplomatic sources said that Kerry’s discussions with the Egyptian President Abdel Fatah Al-Sisi are expected to address challenges facing Egypt and the whole region.

This is the second visit for Kerry to Cairo in the space of less than a month. His previous visit took place on 20 April.

Reuters said that Kerry had already had a brief meeting with Al-Sisi during which Kerry “stressed the importance of Egypt’s role as a regional partner”.

The New York Times reported that reporters who travelled with Kerry were left at the airport and were not able to meet the president.

“The Egyptian authorities made clear, State Department officials said, that reporters like myself would not be welcome at the presidential palace, apparently out of fear we might ask President Abdel Fatah Al-Sisi a question or two about the dissidents he has jailed,” a New York Times reporter said.