Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov arrived in Cairo, Egypt on July 23, as the first stop in a tour of several African nations. He next goes to Ethiopia, then Uganda and the Republic of the Congo.
Today he was received in Cairo by President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, after which Lavrov met with Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry one on one; and their respective delegations met in an extended work session.
Lavrov then met with Arab League Secretary General Ahmed Aboul Gheit, and was expected to address the 22 permanent representatives of the organization. Ten of these states are in Africa. In April this year, a delegation of the Arab League Ministerial Contact Group on Ukraine visited Moscow; the delegation was headed by Egyptian Foriegn Minister Shoukry.
After his talks with Shoukry, Lavrov addressed the problem of sanctions to reporters, according to TASS. Lavrov said that Russia hopes that UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will succeed in resolving the sanctions problems, which hinder grain operations from Russia. “Those illegitimate sanctions that were imposed [against Russia] and that prevented operations with Russian grain, including insurance, including the calling of our ships at foreign ports and foreign ships at Russian ports,” Lavrov said.
“Our Egyptian colleagues understand what is happening [in Ukraine], they understand the context, which is connected with geopolitics, which is connected with the West’s policy to ensure its dominance in international affairs, and they stand, which we appreciate, for the soonest search for a peaceful settlement, taking into account the fundamental, legitimate interests of all participants in this process within the context of building a sustainable European security architecture on a fair basis,” Lavrov said.
“We do not have any prejudices against resuming negotiations on a wider range of issues, but it is not up to us, since the Ukrainian authorities, starting with the President and ending with his numerous advisers, say that there will be no negotiations until Ukraine defeats Russia on the battlefield,” Lavrov explained.
