Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (R) and his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shukri enter a hall during a meeting in Moscow, Russia, March 16, 2016.

:: Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shukri telephoned his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov on Thursday where the two officials discussed the Qatari crisis and stressed the their countries’ rejection of Doha’s support for terrorism.

Ahmed Abu Zaid, spokesman for the Egyptian Foreign Ministry, explained that Shukri briefed Lavrov on the outcome of the four-ministerial meeting held in Cairo on Wednesday, and affirmed the adherence of Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain to rejecting the Qatari support for terrorism and extremism as well as their commitment to the list of demands handed to Qatar in this regard.

During the phone call, Shukri stressed the need for the international community to intensify its efforts in the fight against terrorism and to block all means of financing, supporting and harboring terrorist organizations within the framework of the international strategy to fight and eliminate terrorism.

The Foreign Ministry Spokesman added that the Russian Foreign Minister affirmed his country’s commitment to supporting all international counter-terrorism efforts and its constant readiness to cooperate to eliminate this phenomenon and to maintain the security and stability of the Arab countries.

Shukri and Lavrov also discussed the developments in the Syrian crisis especially with the upcoming Geneva talks. Both parties affirmed their commitment to support the Geneva process and to make tangible progress in the political talks between all Syrian parties.

The two ministers agreed on holding a meeting in Cairo or Moscow to continue discussing the issues of mutual interest.

On the other hand, Shukri received a call from Kuwaiti First Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah Khaled al-Hamad al-Sabah, in which he thanked Egypt and the Arab countries participating in the four-ministerial meeting in Cairo on Wednesday for the appreciation and praise expressed in the joint statement issued by the meeting for the efforts of Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jabber al-Sabah, Emir of the State of Kuwait, and the efforts exerted by the State of Kuwait to preserve Arab national security and Arab relations.

Shukri briefed his Kuwaiti counterpart on the outcome of the four-way ministerial meeting as well as the deliberations and consultations that took place.