03 May 2017•Update: 03 May 2017
By Ahmed al-Masri
DOHA, Qatar
Saudi Deputy Crown Prince and Minister of Defense Mohammed bin Salman has described Egypt-Saudi relations as "strong", blaming Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood group and Iran of trying to drive a wedge between the two countries.
The crown prince made the remarks in an interview with Saudi news presenter Dawood al-Shorian, which was broadcast Tuesday evening on Saudi public and private television.
"Egypt-Saudi relations are strong and deep,” he asserted. “There are no negative feelings between the two countries.”
Bin Salman went on to accuse the Muslim Brotherhood and Iran of trying to damage the two country’s bilateral ties.
"The enemies of the [Saudi] kingdom and Egypt are spreading propaganda in an attempt to harm our relationship," he asserted.
Egypt-Saudi ties came under strain last October after Cairo voted in favor of a Russia-proposed draft resolution on Syria at the UN Security Council.
Following the vote, Saudi state oil firm Aramco suspended oil shipments to Egypt, forcing Cairo to purchase oil from other sources in order to meet its domestic demand.
Aramco eventually resumed its oil shipments to Egypt in mid-March.
Island dispute
In response to a question about the disputed Red Sea islands of Tiran and Sanafir, Bin Salman said: "There is no problem [between Riyadh and Cairo] regarding the islands."
"The islands’ maritime borders were demarcated last year,” he added. “They are registered in Egypt as Saudi islands. They are registered in Saudi Arabia as Saudi islands. They are also registered internationally as Saudi islands."
"Their maritime borders were merely demarcated,” he went on. “Neither Egypt nor Saudi Arabia have given up one square inch of their respective territory."
On April 23, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi paid a visit to Saudi Arabia during which he met with King Salman.
The Saudi king, for his part, visited Cairo last year, where he signed an agreement for the construction of a Saudi-Egypt land bridge and another for the demarcation of the two countries’ maritime borders.
