A meeting between Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi held and Chief of Staff of the UAE Armed Forces Lt. General Hamad Mohammed Thani al-Rumaithi in Cairo on Wednesday, resulted in an agreement to continue security and military coordination and consultations.

Egyptian Minister of Defense and Military Production General Mohamed Zaki and UAE Ambassador to Egypt and Permanent Representative in the Arab League Mariam Khalifa al-Kaabi attended the meeting.

Presidential spokesman Bassam Rady said Sisi conveyed his most sincere greetings to President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, wishing the UAE further development and prosperity.

He affirmed that the relationship between the two countries is the cornerstone of the stability of the Middle East and the Arab region.

Rumaithi underscored the deep-rooted ties between the two countries.

He said the UAE is keen to enhance the bilateral strategic cooperation in all areas, most notably in exchanging military expertise.

Special forces from Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Greece conducted a four-way joint military exercise in September.

Dubbed ‘Hercules-21,’ the four-day drill was held for the first time at the Special Forces Training Center in Peramos, Greece, and it aimed at confronting terrorist elements and exchanging expertise.

The military exercise included lectures on countering terrorism, training on managing joint combat operations among the participating elements, training on fighting in closed and open spaces, hostage rescue and medical evacuation.

Forces were also trained to carry out airdrops and sea landings from the thunderbolt and parachutes as well as raids.

In November, naval and air forces from Egypt, the UAE, Greece