Egypt president visits Saudi after 'muted' tension

8 years ago

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi (L) is welcomed by Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (R) with an official ceremony in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on April 23, 2017 [Bandar Algaloud / Saudi Kingdom Council / Handout]

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi (L) meets Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (R) during his visit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on April 23, 2017 [Bandar Algaloud / Saudi Kingdom Council / Handout]

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi (R) is welcomed by Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (L) with an official ceremony in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on 23 April, 2017 [Bandar Algaloud / Saudi Kingdom Council / Handout]

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi (L) is welcomed by Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (R) with an official ceremony in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on April 23, 2017 [Bandar Algaloud / Saudi Kingdom Council / Handout]

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi (L) is welcomed by Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (R) with an official ceremony in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on 23 April 2017 [Bandar Algaloud / Saudi Kingdom Council / Handout]

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi arrived in Riyadh on Sunday for talks with Saudi King Salman.

The state visit comes in the wake of months of muted tension between the two Arab allies.

Sisi was welcomed by the Saudi monarch upon arrival at King Salman airbase airport in Riyadh, the official SPA news agency reported.

The Egyptian Presidency said the talks between the two leaders will tackle means of bolstering strategic ties between the two states along with issues of mutual concern.

Read: 30,000 Egyptians encouraged to leave Saudi

Cairo and Riyadh have been at odds over a number of political issues, atop of which comes the Syrian conflict.

In October, Egypt voted in favour of a Russian-backed UN resolution on war-torn Syria, which was opposed by Saudi Arabia.

In the same month, Saudi Arabia’s Aramco company suspended oil shipments to Egypt, in which Egyptian officials said were for “commercial” reasons. The shipments, however, were resumed this month.