KUALA LUMPUR – Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein said his Egyptian counterpart, Sameh Hassan Shoukry, welcomed his request to vaccinate some 8,000 Malaysian students there against Covid-19.
At a joint press conference with Shoukry in Cairo, in conjunction with his working visit to the country yesterday, Hishammuddin said Egypt has decided to inoculate all foreigners, including Malaysians.
“I told Minister Shoukry that Malaysia is reciprocating this initiative by extending it to Egyptians in Malaysia,” he said in a statement today.
Hishammuddin is on a two-day trip, his first visit to Egypt since being appointed foreign minister in March last year.
He added that the two countries will cooperate in channelling Malaysian humanitarian and medical aid to Palestinians in Gaza via the Rafah border crossing.
“The way forward now is to provide unimpeded humanitarian assistance and focus on the reconstruction of Gaza.”
He commended Egypt’s swift response to the situation in Gaza, including by opening the Rafah crossing to allow Palestinians injured in Israeli attacks to be brought for treatment at Egyptian hospitals, sending aid, and working to rebuild Gaza with a US$500 million (RM2 billion) allocation.
Hishammuddin expressed Malaysia’s sincere appreciation for Egypt’s leadership in brokering a ceasefire agreement between Palestine and Israel in Gaza that took effect on May 21. – Bernama, June 21, 2021
