Sisi rejects foreign interference at African Union meeting

Speaking at the opening of the African Union's eighth midyear coordination meeting in Egypt's northwestern coastal city of El Alamein, Sisi said interstate relations across the continent must rest on mutual respect and good neighborliness. "Egypt reaffirms its firm rejection of any external interference in the internal affairs of African states," he said in remarks carried by the Egyptian presidency. He urged African nations to move beyond unilateral policies and narrow interests, stressing that respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity remains essential to continental stability.

Nile waters cooperation

The Egyptian leader framed cross-border issues — particularly the management of shared rivers — as opportunities for cooperation rather than confrontation, a clear reference to the decade-long dispute over Ethiopia's Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam on the Blue Nile. Cairo and Khartoum fear the dam could affect their water supplies and have demanded a legally binding agreement on its filling and operation, while Addis Ababa maintains the project is intended to support development and does not seek to harm downstream countries. "The sustainable management of shared resources, particularly water, represents a real test of African countries' ability to integrate," Sisi said, emphasizing that while every nation possesses the right to development, this must be exercised responsibly and without harming other states.

Continental economic integration

Turning to trade, Sisi called for full implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area, which entered into force in 2019 during Egypt's AU chairmanship, arguing that the pact could expand intra-African commerce and support industrialization. "Africa should not remain merely a supplier of raw materials that it later imports as finished products," he said, urging stronger continental value chains and manufacturing capacity. He noted that economic integration must become a practical driver of job creation and technology transfer across the continent.

Sisi's remarks come amid heightened diplomatic tensions between Ethiopia, Eritrea and Egypt. Addis Ababa recently expelled an Egyptian diplomat and closed its embassy in Asmara, while Eritrea severed diplomatic relations with Ethiopia entirely. Ethiopian army chief Birhanu Jula had accused foreign powers including Egypt of supporting armed groups to destabilize his country, allegations that Cairo's Foreign Ministry subsequently denied.