Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi affirmed that “Egypt and Saudi Arabia are the heart of the Arab and Islamic nations, and that any harm that befalls either country will affect the other.”
He said, “The saying that the national security of Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the Arab Gulf states is linked is correct.”
Al-Sisi pointed out during the Police Academy’s celebration of “Graduates Day” for the year 2026, on Thursday, that “targeting the Kingdom in this way affects Arab and Egyptian national security, and that Egypt does not accept compromising the security of the Kingdom and its borders, and also rejects compromising the security of the Red Sea and international sea lanes.” The Egyptian President also stressed that “what matters to us is the Kingdom’s security, its stability, and reducing the escalation.”
This comes at a time when Egypt and Qatar stressed “the necessity of stopping all hostilities against the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, completely condemning these attacks, and showing solidarity with the Kingdom.”
The two countries agree on “the importance of supporting the efforts made and unifying work to reduce tensions and prevent the expansion of the circle of conflict, and to urge the activation of political and diplomatic paths to resolve the current crisis, in a way that contributes to enhancing regional security and stability.”
The Egyptian-Qatari assurances came during a phone call between Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdel Ati and Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdul Rahman Al Thani, who discussed regional developments.
According to a statement by Egyptian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nader Zaki on Thursday, the phone call comes within the framework of continuous communication and coordination between the two brotherly countries regarding various issues of common interest. The two ministers discussed fraternal relations and various areas of bilateral cooperation between the two sides, including the exchange of visits at the highest level, and praised the achievements of these relations, stressing the keenness to continue strengthening them.
Abdel-Ati also exchanged views on regional developments and recent tensions in the region with his Kuwaiti counterpart, Sheikh Jarrah Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, where “emphasis was placed on rejecting and condemning the attacks on sisterly Saudi Arabia, and the necessity of concerted efforts to reduce escalation, and work to advance paths of political solutions and give priority to diplomatic dialogue, to support security and stability in the region.”
According to the Foreign Ministry spokesman on Thursday, the call also discussed aspects of bilateral relations between Egypt and Kuwait, where the two ministers appreciated the level of cooperation relations in various fields and the historical ties that bind the two brotherly countries. They also discussed the ongoing preparations for holding the next round of joint ministerial committee meetings in Kuwait.
Egypt repeatedly renews its full solidarity with the sisterly Gulf states, and its standing by their side in the face of everything that affects their security and territorial integrity. It also stresses “the rejection of any attacks aimed at harming the sovereignty and stability of the Gulf states.” She called on more than one occasion to “immediately stop the escalation and resort to serious dialogue and diplomatic means to settle the various outstanding issues in the region.”
Meanwhile, the Egyptian Foreign Minister stressed “the need to intensify efforts aimed at achieving calm, reducing escalation in the region, containing tensions, and preventing the expansion of the conflict, in a way that preserves the security and stability of the region, and guarantees freedom of navigation in the Red Sea and the Strait of Hormuz.” This came during the “works of the third session of the Joint Ministerial Committee” between Egypt and Thailand in Bangkok, Thursday, in the presence of the Thai Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangkitkiw.
According to the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the meeting witnessed an exchange of visions regarding developments in the regional and international situation, as Minister Abdel Ati reviewed “Egyptian efforts to support security and stability in the Middle East, and efforts aimed at supporting the completion of the implementation of US President Donald Trump’s comprehensive peace plan in Gaza,” stressing “the importance of full commitment to the entitlements of the first phase, including ensuring the flow of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip without obstacles, and moving forward with early recovery steps.”
The “Trump plan” includes 20 points to end the conflict in Gaza, and moves from a ceasefire, to disarmament, technocratic rule, reconstruction, and Israeli withdrawal from the Strip.
Sarah Khaled is keenly monitoring the price movement in the Egyptian market, in preparation for purchasing electrical appliances before her wedding at the beginning of next year, amid fluctuations in the price of the dollar against the pound over the past weeks, and regional tensions that negatively affect supply chains and are directly reflected in production inputs and the prices of imported goods.
Sarah, who works in a private company and lives in the Dar El Salam area, south of Cairo, noticed the rise in the prices of electrical appliances. She said: “Prices are rising, and at the same time there are offers to encourage purchases.”
She took advantage of the “offers” and bought small kitchen appliances, and was hoping to buy the rest of the appliances if it weren’t for the “liquidity crisis.”
The rise in commodity prices was accompanied by an increase in the dollar exchange rate recently, as it recorded 52.70 pounds in Egyptian banks after it was about 48 pounds before the Iranian war last February.
The rise in the exchange rate usually reflects on the movement of commodity prices, especially durable appliances whose manufacture depends on imports, according to the head of the Electrical Appliances Division at the Giza Chamber of Commerce in Egypt, George Zakaria, who, in an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat, referred to what he described as “the state of stagnation that the market is currently witnessing,” which makes merchants unable to raise prices with weak purchasing activity.
Economist Ali Al-Idrissi points out that the Egyptian markets are suffering from a state of “confusion” that is reflected in the purchasing decisions made by citizens, as they face a dilemma as a result of the decline in purchasing power, but at the same time they fear rising prices.
He added to Asharq Al-Awsat: “All current and expected indicators reflect expected increases in prices, which deepens the crisis for manufacturers, whose production costs are increasing on the one hand, while the market is witnessing a stagnation in buying and selling activity on the other hand.”
He expected that the situation would become more difficult if the Central Bank decided to raise interest rates, which would have a greater impact on the industry, explaining that many factories were faltering and could not withstand.
The Central Bank of Egypt set interest rates last September at an average of 19.5 percent, while the inflation rate on an annual basis in the same month recorded 13.9 percent, compared to 14.5 in August.
Specialists have warned that the Egyptian market suffers from many risks, not only the rise in prices, but also the reduction in employment resulting from it, as with the rise in production costs and the weakness of purchasing activity, factories resorted to reducing their production by a rate that may reach 50 percent of their production capacity, and were forced to lay off workers to reduce costs, which threatens the stability of the industrial market, according to what was reported by local media.
The head of the Egyptian Federation of Renewable Energy Organizations and Associations, Mohamed Helmy Helal, pointed to the impact of one decision, which was to increase electricity prices last July, and said that it caused an increase in the cost of production by a rate ranging from 3 to 7 percent in regular industries, and 8 to 15 percent in energy-intensive industries, according to press statements.
Zakaria, head of the Electrical Appliances Division at the Giza Chamber of Commerce in Egypt, pointed to many other factors that affect the cost of production, most notably the price of the dollar, as well as the high cost of shipping and import insurance for industry components. He called on the government to try to support the industry in the current conditions, whether by avoiding raising electricity prices again, or in any other way.
He added that some companies are considering launching offers to pay products in installments for 12 months without interest, to move the market out of the state of stagnation that complicates the scene and increases its confusion.
Non-oil private sector activity declined in Egypt last September, with the Purchasing Managers' Index falling to 47.2 points, compared to 49.6 points in August, which reflects weak demand, high production costs, and the continued state of uncertainty associated with regional developments.
The Purchasing Managers' Index expresses the health of the economic situation of the manufacturing and services sector.
According to the monthly report of the Standard & Poor's Group, the two largest components of the Purchasing Managers' Index, which are production and new orders, declined sharply and rapidly during September, after many companies resorted to reducing their activity as a result of a lack of customer demand.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi affirmed “not to harm his country’s constitution,” and said that “Egypt has a constitution that has been approved, and no one will touch it.”
Al-Sisi’s assertions came in his speech at the forty-fourth educational symposium of the Egyptian Armed Forces, on the occasion of the anniversary of the victories of the October War of 1973. In the context of his talk about “attempts to target his country from within, and to spread psychological warfare targeting Egyptians’ confidence in state institutions.”
Al-Sisi pointed out that “the battle against targeting his country from abroad is still ongoing,” and he appealed to Egyptians to protect themselves from “continuous attempts to target public opinion.” He said that “the confrontation is a shared responsibility of the Egyptian people with government institutions,” according to a statement issued by the Egyptian presidency on Wednesday evening.
Al-Sisi witnessed the activities of the educational symposium of the Egyptian Armed Forces, entitled “Homeland of Heroes,” on the occasion of the fifty-third anniversary of the October victories, in the presence of senior officials in the Egyptian government and commanders of the Egyptian army.
Al-Sisi differentiated between the challenge his country faced at the time of the October 1973 War, and what it has been witnessing in recent years, and said that “the challenge more than half a century ago was restoring the occupied land of Sinai,” while the challenge in 2013 was “restoring the Egyptian state and preserving its national identity after an attempt to seize it and change its course.”
Al-Sisi considered that “attempts to influence citizens’ awareness and falsify facts are still continuing,” and cited attempts aimed at casting doubt on the October victory or diminishing its importance, through media tools and modern technologies, including social media platforms. He stressed that “national memory represents the first line of defense for any nation, and tampering with it or distorting it leads to weakening the people’s ability to perceive facts and distinguish between right and wrong, which causes harm to the future of the state.”
According to Sisi, “the most prominent danger that still exists in his country is the attempts to target national awareness and tamper with the collective memory of Egyptians,” and he stressed that “promoting public awareness is not the responsibility of state agencies alone, but rather it is a shared national responsibility that requires the combined efforts of all society.”
Al-Sisi revealed some of the discussions of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, after the revolution of January 25, 2011, and before the Brotherhood took over the rule of the country. He said that he assured Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, the late former Defense Minister, during the meeting at the time: “There is no objection to handing over power to the Brotherhood if they are elected,” and he said that “he saw at the time that preserving the state and the continuation of its institutions remained an absolute priority,” pointing out that “the most important criterion is the survival and continuation of the state, regardless of who is in charge of its administration.”
Al-Sisi warned against misinformation campaigns directed at the Egyptian people, and said that “the state has a constitution that has been approved, and no one will touch it.” He reiterated that “the constitution will not be touched,” and said that the rumors and attempts witnessed during the recent period to falsify awareness and stir up public opinion “aim to destabilize and blow up the situation from within his country,” according to a statement by the Egyptian presidential spokesman.
Regarding the Israeli Finance Minister’s talk about Sinai, Al-Sisi stressed that “his country fought a war in defense of its land and regained it completely,” and pointed out that “his country does not have any hidden agendas, and its main priority is to preserve its borders and national security.”
Regarding the regional situation, the Egyptian President affirmed his country’s support for the Gulf states, and stressed that “the national security of the Gulf states is an integral part of Egyptian national security.” He said that “his country’s security is an extension of the Gulf national security,” and stressed that “Egypt supports its brothers in the Gulf states, and is ready to do whatever is necessary to reduce the escalation, secure navigation, and restore stability to the region.”
