Marsa Matrouh, Egypt
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on Saturday opened a strategic naval base on the Mediterranean Sea to “secure shipping lines”, the presidency said.
“It is the latest Egyptian military base on the Mediterranean, and will be focused on securing the country’s northern and western front,” the Egyptian presidency said in a statement.
The ceremony was attended by Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan.
The base lies some 255 kilometres west of Alexandria, towards the border with Libya, a country where both Egypt and the United Arab Emirates have played a key military role.
The base includes an airstrip and a 1,000-metre (3,280-foot) long pier. —Agencies
