Egyptian president discusses cooperation with IAEA chief

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi received Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi in Egypt's Sharm el-Sheikh resort city on Monday.

Spokesman for the Egyptian Presidency Bassam Radi said in a statement that Sisi affirmed Egypt's support to Grossi in his work, adding that Cairo is looking forward to deepening cooperation with the agency during the coming period, Xinhua news agency reported.

Sisi and Grossi met on the sidelines of Egypt's ongoing third edition of the four-day World Youth Forum (WYF) which kicked off on Friday.

The president said that the true nuclear ability of any country is stability, security and development, stressing Egypt's keenness to cooperate with the agency to benefit from its expertise in developing nuclear infrastructure.

Egypt and Russia signed in December 2017 an agreement to build Egypt's first nuclear power plant in Dabaa city in Egypt's coastal Matrouh province.

Sisi also stressed Egypt's adherence to its commitments to implement the highest standards in nuclear security and safety.

For his part, Grossi praised Egypt's regional and international roles in the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons and the peaceful use of atomic energy, the spokesman said.

He also hailed the recent achievements in the energy sector in Egypt, which would raise Egypt to broader levels and horizons in the development process.IANS