President Hosni Mubarak and Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni asserted Wednesday30/7/2008 their firm commitment to supporting the Palestinian cause and full backing of all efforts aiming at establishing permanent peace and stability in the Middle East.

In their joint statement the two leaders asserted their support for the Nile Basin Initiative and commitment to continue cooperation within its framework and hope that the Initiative member states would reach an agreement on the best ways to advance their cooperation.

They welcomed the proposal endorsed by the 11th summit of the Organization of the Islamic Conference in Dakar, Senegal, on extending railways lines across Africa from Dakar to Port Sudan saying they also welcome the move to extend the line to northern Uganda.

The idea of building this railways line is fulfilling a dream that has been harbored by Africans for decades to link the northern corner of Africa with its southern one by a giant railway line that stretches from Cape Town to Cairo, the statement read.

As far as bilateral relations are concerned the two leaders expressed their satisfaction with the progress made in political, economic and social ties and agreed on the need of continued support for technical cooperation and for exchanged visits between the two countries' officials.

They also agreed on reactivating the joint permanent committee to further boost bilateral relations and open new vistas of cooperation.

They asserted the importance of intensifying cooperation in the agricultural, scientific research, technological, educational, health and cultural spheres and agreed on cultivating agricultural lands in Uganda with wheat to be exported to Egypt and increasing cooperation in the export of meat, fish and dairy products.

They further underlined the need to enhance cooperation bilaterally and within the framework of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) which works for promoting regional economic integration through trade and investment.

The two leaders called for establishing a strong partnership between their public and private sectors to increase joint investments and boost cooperation in the domains of trade, tourism, construction, health and food industries.

The two Presidents welcomed the positive developments witnessed in many African hotbeds such as in Burundi, Sierra Leone, Liberia and Ivory Coast and urged the authorities in those countries to work for maintaining stability and ending disputes.

They expressed worry about the unprecedented move by the International Criminal Court's chief prosecutor to request an arrest warrant for Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir on genocide charges.

They voiced support for all decisions and stands taken during the recent African Union summit, the AU Peace and Security Council and the Arab League Ministerial Council, affirming their intention to work for reaching an acceptable stand that boosts chances for realizing peace in Sudan, especially in the restive region of Darfur.

They also underlined their support for the presence of the hybrid United Nations-African Union peacekeeping force in Darfur, pressing for accelerating the pace of the deployment of the peacekeepers across the troubled western Sudanese region.

The two presidents welcomed steps taken to restore relations between Sudan and Chad.


As for Zimbabwe, Mubarak and Museveni welcomed recent steps and developments among the Zimbabwean political powers and efforts exerted by African countries and international organizations to restore stability in that country.

Shifting to the Middle East, they reiterated their support for the Palestinian cause and the different initiatives for achieving permanent and just peace in Middle East.

Mubarak and Museveni highlighted the importance of boosting agro-investments and developing the agricultural infrastructure across the continent to face the international food crisis.

The two leaders also underscored the importance of confronting global warming.

Meanwhile, they condemned all forms of terror and urged the international community to come up with a clear definition of terror that would draw a clear line between peoples' right to resist occupation and terrorism.

Mubarak and Museveni stressed every country's right to develop peaceful nuclear energy, exhorting the international community and Iran to settle the Tehran nuclear file.