25 June 2009…

Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit heads to Trieste, Italy, on June 25^th, in response to the invitation of his Italian counterpart to attend the Ministerial Meeting organized by the G8 on Afghanistan, which will be held on June 26^th and 27^th. The Spokesman for the Foreign Ministry stated that a limited group of countries –effective on the international arena- were invited to exchange views with the G8 on the optimal means to deal with the unstable situation in Afghanistan and the surrounding region.

The Spokesman stated that Trieste Meeting will witness intensive effort covering all aspects of the Afghan issue, where the participating Foreign Ministers will discuss the issues related to the regional dimension of the Afghan economic development, improving the infrastructure, alleviating the sufferings of the refugees, means to improve the efficiency of human resources, as well as means to support the agricultural sector and provide food security for all regions in Afghanistan. The conference will also tackle the issue of countering narcotics and smuggling between Afghanistan and the neighboring countries.

The Spokesman also outlined that within the framework of the Egyptian efforts to support cadres and develop Afghan human resources, Egypt has recently agreed with the Afghan Ministry of Education to establish an institution affiliated to Al Azhar in Kabul. The Foreign Ministry also presented a number of specialized training courses –through the Egyptian Fund for Technical Cooperation with the Commonwealth and Afghanistan- to Afghan cadres especially in the fields of health, judiciary, diplomacy, as well as countering crime and narcotics.

The Spokesman stated that Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit is to participate in the meeting of the Arab Follow-up Committee with the International Quartet, scheduled to be held on June 27^th, on the sidelines of the meeting on Afghanistan. He also stated that Aboul Gheit will present the Egyptian point of view concerning the latest developments of the Palestinian situation and the efforts of the Palestinian dialogue, taking into account that this meeting is the first to be held after Obama’s Administration assumed office and that it will be a good and significant opportunity to exchange Arab and international views on means of pushing the peace achievement efforts in the coming period, pointing out in this context the stance adopted by the Arab Foreign Ministers, on June 24^th, in their meeting on this subject in Cairo.