F.P. Report
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan Thursday held a telephonic conversation with Egyptian President Abdel Fatteh Sisi and conveyed Pakistan’s solidarity with the people and the Government of Egypt and commended their effective measures to control the spread of COVID-19.
The wide-ranging discussion between the two leaders focused on their respective national approaches to managing COVID-19 and Prime Minister Imran Khan’s call to launch a ‘Global Initiative on Debt Relief’ for the developing countries, a PM Media Office news release said.
The prime minister fondly recalled their earlier interaction on the sidelines of the OIC Summit in Makkah and the UN General Assembly Session in New York during 2019.
He congratulated President Sisi for pursuing an effective national strategy.
He also highlighted the key elements of Pakistan’s approach aimed at saving lives from the scourge of the virus and protecting the most vulnerable segments of population from acute economic distress.
On the issue of debt, the prime minister underscored that while debt suspension would help free up resources in the developing countries to manage the unprecedented global health and economic crisis, where people were facing a stark choice — death by COVID-19 or by hunger — more measures were needed to reboot the developing countries’ economies.
President Sisi expressed support for the prime minister’s Debt Relief Initiative.
The prime minister stressed the importance of working together to evolve a comprehensive plan to turn the crisis generated by global pandemic into an opportunity for economic regeneration.
The two leaders reaffirmed their commitment to further solidify the close fraternal ties between Pakistan and Egypt.
Prime Minister Imran Khan reiterated his invitation to President Sisi to visit Pakistan at the earliest convenience.