CAIRO — Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has held meetings with Arab leaders, including Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, Jordan’s King Abdullah II and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, in the lead-up to US President Joe Biden’s visit to Saudi Arabia slated for mid-July.

On June 19, Sisi held a tripartite meeting with Abdullah and Khalilfa, during which the senior leaders welcomed the upcoming summit to be hosted July 16 by Saudi Arabia and to include the leaders of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Egypt, Jordan, Iraq and the United States.

On the sidelines of the tripartite meeting, Sisi said that his country is looking forward to “strengthening constructive cooperation with Egypt, Bahrain and Jordan, in such a way to achieve the common interests of the people and enhance joint Arab action efforts, especially in light of the major challenges resulting from regional and international development,” in reference to the Russian-Ukrainian war.

According to the Jordan News Agency, the three leaders “stressed the importance of intensifying work in order to face the challenges of food security, rising prices and energy costs resulting from international developments (the Ukrainian war).”