$2 billion deposit confirms strong Saudi-Egyptian ties

Dina FouaD & Mohammed Rasooldeen
People and vehicles are seen caught in a traffic jam in front of the Central Bank of Egypt's headquarters in downtown Cairo, Egypt, in this December 21, 2015 file photo. (Reuters)

RIYADH: Sherif Ismail, the Egyptian prime minister, has announced that Egypt received a deposit of $2 billion from Saudi Arabia in September. Earlier this month, Egypt’s central bank announced that the country’s foreign exchange reserves rose from $16.564 billion in late August to $19.582 billion by the end of September, after receiving the deposit from the Kingdom.
Economists said that the role played by the Kingdom helped Egypt and its economy to stand on its feet again after the deteriorating situation that hit the Egyptian economy in recent years. They pointed out that this deposit confirms that the Kingdom will not abandon Egypt and will support it in all eventuality.
Adel Hanafi, vice president of the Egyptian Union in Saudi Arabia, said that the depth of the relationship between Egypt and Saudi Arabia throughout history is no secret, pointing out that there is a vigorous attempt to hit at this cooperation, especially since these two are the most important countries in the Arab world. He stressed the importance of unity and warned against listening to rumors.
Ahmed Kojak, vice minister of finance for financial policies, said that the step taken by the Kingdom to support the Egyptian economy is priceless as there was also significant progress in supporting the Egyptian economy by G-7 countries and other friendly nations such as the UAE and China. This economic assistance helped in achieving significant progress to secure Egypt’s economy by $6 billion to bridge the financial gap during the year 2016-2017.
Ambassador Gamal Bayoumi, secretary-general of the Union of Arab Investors, said that the deposit from Saudi Arabia reveals the truth about Saudi-Egyptian ties, and the continued support of the Kingdom, and it is necessary to refute the various rumors about bilateral relations between the two countries. Bayoumi pointed out that media rumor mongering will not succeed in dislodging Egyptian-Saudi Arabian relations, particularly on the economic side. Relations between the two countries are based on the foundations of a solid understanding.
Mahmoud Al-Aptanoni, an economist at Future Academy, said that the Saudi deposit of $2 billion had a deep impact on the rise in foreign reserves to approach $20 billion. He said he is convinced that the recent political events will not affect the well-established relations between Egypt and Saudi Arabia.