Israel Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Mohammed bin Zayed held a joint meeting in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt to discuss cooperation on defense, energy and other issues on Tuesday.

The leaders discussed a joint defense strategy in dealing with the Iranian threat, both nuclear and attacks by its proxies in the Middle East.

The meeting took place as the nuclear deal between world powers and Iran was nearing completion, and Israel and the United Arab Emirates expressed dissatisfaction with American concessions to the Islamic Republic, most recently the possibility that the US may remove the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps from its list of foreign terror organizations.

“The leaders discussed the ties between the three countries on the background of recent developments in the world and the region, and the ways to strengthen [the ties] at all levels,” the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office stated.

Sisi’s office, however, focused on economic matters in the first public statement from the meeting.

“The meeting dealt with discussions on the repercussions of global developments, especially with regard to energy, market stability, and food security, as well as exchanging visions and views on the latest developments of a number of international and regional issues,” Sisi’s spokesman wrote on Facebook.

The sides discussed the impact of the war against Ukraine on their countries, including rising wheat prices, and the changing energy market. Bennett told Sisi and MBZ about his efforts to mediate between Russia and Ukraine.

The leaders spoke of their countries’ advantages in the energy sector and how they can work together.

Syrian President Bashar Assad’s visit to the UAE this week also came up in the meeting.

Source: https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/article-702020