CAIRO, — Egypt’s Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty and U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau reviewed a slate of regional crises, with Cairo pressing for accelerated steps on Gaza, urging a humanitarian pause in Sudan, and warning that any move to recognise Somaliland would undermine Somalia’s sovereignty and destabilise the Red Sea corridor.
On Gaza, Abdelatty said Egypt supports moving into the next phase of the peace plan, including the rapid deployment of an international stabilisation force to help monitor and reinforce the ceasefire. He also called for the reopening of the Rafah crossing in both directions and an Israeli withdrawal to enable reconstruction and sustained humanitarian access.
On Sudan, Cairo pushed for a humanitarian truce, the creation of safe corridors for civilians and relief deliveries, and a Sudanese-led political process that preserves national unity and state institutions—language consistent with Egypt’s longstanding position against fragmentation and prolonged governance vacuums in neighbouring states.
Turning to the Horn of Africa, Abdelatty cautioned that recognition of the “so-called Somaliland” would violate international law, infringe Somalia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and heighten instability in the Horn and the Red Sea, a route central to global trade and regional security.
The talks also touched on Egypt’s water security, with Abdelatty reaffirming that the Nile is Egypt’s lifeline and pledging “serious and constructive” cooperation with Nile Basin states in line with international law, even as disputes persist over Ethiopia’s Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD). Egypt and Sudan have repeatedly warned that unilateral filling and operation of the dam could reduce downstream flows and deepen water stress.
