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Al-Ahram Weekly On-line 2 - 8 November 2000 Issue No. 506 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly On-line 2 - 8 November 2000 Issue No. 506
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region Interview International Economy Opinion Culture Features Travel Living Sports Profile People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Schroeder begins peace tour
By Nevine Khalil & Niveen Wahish
President Hosni Mubarak held talks on Saturday with Germany's Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder to forge closer economic cooperation and discuss the stalled Middle East peace process. Schroeder's two-day visit was the first leg of a regional tour including stopovers in Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, Israel and the Palestinian territories. The tour which, according to German sources, was closely coordinated with the United States and France -- the latter the current president of the European Union (EU) -- was intended as a contribution to the EU's peace-promotion efforts.
Schroeder and Mubarak
During the 75 minutes of talks and dinner, Mubarak and Schroeder exchanged views on the Middle East crisis, the deadlocked peace talks and the violence in the Palestinian territories. "I decided to visit Cairo first because it is a main pivot in the peace process," Schroeder told reporters afterwards.
This is Schroeder's first official visit to Egypt. Last April, he attended a Euro-African summit in the Egyptian capital. The German Chancellor lauded Mubarak's efforts at the Sharm El-Sheikh and Arab summits last month, describing the president's achievements as "historic." Schroeder said Mubarak plays the role of "wise mediator" in order to revive the peace talks between Palestinians and Israelis. "The president is an essential player in the peace process, and his role will continue in the future," he said.
Schroeder noted that Germany and the European Union were "very interested" in making progress on the various peace tracks, and hoped that the violence would stop to make way for "the resumption of talks on the road to peace."
Following a meeting on Sunday with Arab League Secretary-General Esmat Abdel-Meguid, Schroeder said that the presence of European foreign policy chief Javier Solana at the Sharm El-Sheikh summit showed that Europe was willing and ready to play a part in peace efforts. "I made it clear that our emphasis would continue to be on the economic input to foster stabilisation," he added.
"We don't want any more victims," the German Chancellor said on Saturday with Mubarak by his side, adding that "the victims who fell touched the sentiments of the German people." An Arab League official said Schroeder had accepted a request by Abdel-Meguid for Germany to provide medical treatment to a number of Palestinians wounded in the latest confrontations.
On bilateral relations, Mubarak said both sides agreed "to a large extent on most issues, [and] cooperation is progressing at a good pace." Schroeder said that differences on bilateral issues "are bound to be resolved to the satisfaction of both sides."
A unique feature of Schroeder's visit to Egypt was his meeting with businessmen of the German-Arab Chamber of Industry and Commerce (GACIC) and laying the foundation stone for the German Industry Tower in Mohandiseen. In fact, this is the only economic function throughout the tour. Yet, his speech to GACIC members was not devoid of political statements stressing the importance of peace.
Moving on to economic matters, Schroeder described German-Egyptian relations as "excellent", saying that they are becoming "more intensive from year to year," he praised Egypt's continued economic progress, saying "it deserves respect," and affirmed that German businessmen trust Egypt's economic potential.
Egypt is Germany's second biggest trade partner in the Arab world after Saudi Arabia, and the second largest recipient of German financial aid after China. Last year's German exports to Egypt stood at 4 billion marks, and Schroeder deplored the fact that the volume of Egyptian exports to Europe is limited. "The European market can take on more Egyptian goods," he said. To be able to do that, the Chancellor continued, Egyptian companies need to become more competitive by opening up the domestic market to foreign competition. "It's wrong to seal off a country against imports," he said, stressing that open markets are conducive to growth. Schroeder also expressed hope that the Egypt-EU partnership agreement will be signed soon.
The German Industry Tower, whose foundation stone was laid down by Schroeder in the presence of Prime Minister Atef Ebeid, will house the new premises of GACIC, which boasts 1,500 members. Moreover, it will provide space for conferences, workshops, training sessions and business meetings. It will also include a display centre for German products manufactured both in Germany and in Egypt as well as a data centre from which businessmen may conduct e-commerce activities.
