Saudi Gazette Cairo — A British government delegation, including aviation and counter-terrorism experts, visited Cairo last week for discussions with the Egyptian authorities on a joint plan to restart British flights to Sharm El-Sheikh as soon as possible. The delegation was sent at the instruction of Prime Minister David Cameron, and headed by the Prime Minister's envoy on aviation security, William Patey. Meetings included discussions with Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, Tourism Minister Hisham Zaazou, as well as with security, counter-terrorism, and aviation experts. The British delegation conveyed a message from Prime Minister Cameron that the United Kingdom would work with the Egyptian authorities to allow normal flights to and from Sharm El-Sheikh as soon as possible. They welcomed the close cooperation with Egyptian authorities over the last two weeks to ensure the safety of passengers departing from Sharm El-Sheikh. The delegation said Britain would continue to work with the Egyptian Government to defeat shared enemies and threats to citizens in Europe, North Africa and beyond. Commenting on the discussions with Egyptian counterparts, British Ambassador John Casson said: "Britain was the first to act on airport security issues at Sharm El-Sheikh, and we want to be the first to find the solutions to restore normal flights as soon as possible." Casson said the talks had been encouraging and that there was a strong basis to return flights as soon as possible. "A strong Egyptian economy with a strong tourist industry, at the strategic heart of this vital region is a national interest for Britain," he said. "Recent events have shown that every country must take every possible step to protect their citizens. Britain will do that. But we must not allow anything to drive Britain and Egypt apart, or undermine our long-term economic and security partnership."
