国际英语新闻:Egypt, Saudi join hands to face divisive regional interventions

CAIRO, March 4 (Xinhua) -- Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi reached a deal on Sunday with visiting Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on joint efforts to face divisive regional interventions.

"The two sides stressed that they will continue working together to face the regional interventions and the attempts of division among regional states, and to unite as one bloc to confront the threats and challenges facing the region, particularly terrorism and its supporting states," Presidential Spokesman Bassam Rady said in a statement.

"President Sisi stressed that the Gulf security is an integral part of the Egyptian national security," Rady added.

Mohammed bin Salman arrived in Cairo earlier on Sunday in a three-day visit as the first destination of his first foreign tour since he was named crown prince last year and launched a massive anti-corruption campaign in the kingdom that purged political and economic elite.

The crown prince is scheduled to leave Egypt to Britain on March 7 and later visit the United States, the kingdom's closest and strongest Western ally.

Sisi reiterated Egypt's keenness on elevating the level of bilateral cooperation with Saudi Arabia in various fields in the light of the distinguished strategic ties betwene the two countries, according to the Egyptian presidential spokesman.

Last June, Egypt joined Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain in a blockade against Qatar, accusing the oil-rich state of supporting terrorism, interfering in internal affairs and seeking closer ties with Iran, the arch-Saudi rival in the Gulf region. The charges have repeatedly been denied by Qatar.

"The Saudi crown prince expressed hope that the visit will add momentum to the strategic relations between the two nations and peoples and to boost bilateral cooperation in all fields," said the Egyptian spokesman.

Bin Salman's visit comes a day after Egypt's top constitutional court nullified a lower court ruling that challenges the country's transfer of two Red Sea islands to Saudi Arabia according to a maritime demarcation agreement.

The demarcation deal was signed during a rare visit of Saudi King Salman to Egypt in April 2016.

In response to the Egyptians who opposed the deal, the Egyptian leadership repeatedly said the two islands were originally Saudi but leased to Egypt in the 1950s.

On Sunday evening, the Egyptian president and the Saudi crown prince oversaw the signing ceremony of a number of agreements on environment and economic cooperation, including the establishment of a Saudi-Egyptian investment fund.