By RFIPubliée on 23-04-2019Modified on 23-04-2019 at 16:53

Avoiding any slippage and ensuring stability and peace in Sudan and Libya are the objectives of the two African Summits meeting in an emergency Tuesday in Cairo under the leadership of the Egyptian Head of State. Several African presidents are present around Abdel Fattah al-Sissi to try to find a way out of crisis in these two countries. The Egyptian President delivered a speech at the opening of these two summits.

With our correspondent in Cairo, Alexandre Buccianti

President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi said there was a consensus among African states to give the Sudanese Transitional Military Council a further three months to reach a democratic regime. He added that Foreign Ministers will meet in one month to reassess the situation.

The Egyptian president said the participants had called on the international community to support Sudan economically. They also emphasized their support for Sudan's efforts to secure its borders and prevent the infiltration and smuggling of arms. In his opening statement, President Sissi stressed the need to find an African solution to the Sudan crisis while calling for international economic support.

He reiterated the Egyptian position supporting the will of the Sudanese people to achieve a civilian government. However, he felt that the democratic transition required time to achieve free and fair elections. He warned against the risk of chaos.

Libya on the afternoon program

The presidents of South Africa, Congo, Rwanda, Chad, Somalia, and Djibouti participate in the summit. A meeting to be followed by a second summit on Libya with South Africa, Congo and Rwanda still under Egyptian presidency.

President Sissi summoned these emergency summits as AU President, but also to serve the Egyptian interests. Egypt's interests are mostly safe. The chaos in Libya in the west and the unrest in Sudan in the south are considered a very serious threat by the intelligence services that handle both cases. They fear that Egypt, which faces Islamist terrorism in Sinai in the East, will be encircled by instability. Cairo is therefore discreetly supporting Marshal Khalifa Haftar in Libya and hopes that the transition to Sudan will be in order, an order guaranteed by the army.

    On the same subject

    Egypt hosts summit on Sudan and Libya

    Sudan: why the protesters broke off the dialogue with the army

    Libya: life continues in Tripoli despite Marshal Haftar's threat

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