British Foreign Secretary William Hague was in Cairo on Monday for talks with Egyptian officials on the country’s transitional period, as well as on the region’s multiple crises.
Britain ‘supports what Egypt has achieved in the last three months,’ and is keen for Egypt to secure democracy and stability in the future, Hague said in a press conference following talks with Foreign Minister Nabil el-Araby.
The ministers discussed ‘democratic progress in the country, which is taking place slowly, but in the right direction,’ el-Araby said.
Egypt has been ruled by the military since a popular uprising led to the resignation of ex-president Hosny Mubarak on February 11. A caretaker government is in place and parliamentary elections are slated for September.
Hague described the ongoing crackdown by the Syrian government against protesters as ‘unacceptable,’ adding that ‘the next step will be taken in the UN Security Council.’
The UN Security Council is expected to produce a resolution condemning the violence in Syria and calling for meaningful reforms in the country, Hague said.
Regarding the ongoing conflict in neighbouring Libya, Hague said Moamer Gaddafi’s regime ‘had no future’ and said that the international community would continue to exert economic, diplomatic, and military pressure on the Libyan leader.
El-Araby said the talks also touched upon the recent Egyptian- brokered Palestinian reconciliation agreement between the Islamist Hamas movement and the secular Fatah party.
Britain welcomed the Palestinian reconciliation, but was awaiting further details, Hague said, adding that ‘government comes from actions, and not from intentions.’
The agreement, set to come into effect following a signing ceremony in Cairo later this week, calls for an interim government of ‘independents’ which would set the stage for elections in one year’s time.
Hague, who arrived in Egypt on Sunday night, also met with the head of the Supreme Council for Armed Forces Mohammed Tantawi, Prime Minister Essam Sharaf, and secretary general of the Arab League Amr Moussa.