LOC19:20
16:20 GMT
PARIS, Aug 16 (KUNA) -- French President Emmanuel Macron and his Egyptian counterpart Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi discussed by telephone on Thursday a variety of issues including the situation in Libya and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Macron's office indicated in a statement.
Both men also discussed "the strong cooperation between France and Egypt, notably in economic and security matters," the Elysee Palace noted. Libya topped the agenda for regional issues and Macron and Al-Sisi held an overview of their efforts to support the political process under UN auspices.
In particular, they reviewed the May 29 initiative in Paris when major Libyan parties committed during a conference to work for a political solution in Libya and organise elections there in the near future, potentially before the end of 2018.
An agreement was also reached in Paris last May to open a dialogue on regrouping all Libyan armed factions into a single security force.
On the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, both presidents "stressed the urgency of a de-escalation and humanitarian support for Gaza" and Macron praised Egyptian efforts to further inter-Palestinian reconciliation and get a truce in Gaza, all the while seeking to improve humanitarian access to the beleaguered territory.
Macron and Al-Sisi committed to staying in contact on these questions in the coming weeks. (end)
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