MOSCOW, April 18. /TASS/. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov and Ambassador of Egypt to Moscow Nazih el-Nagari discussed cooperation in BRICS and arms control issues, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

"During the conversation, the main attention was paid to issues of interaction within BRICS in the light of Russia’s chairmanship in the association in 2024," the ministry said.

The Russian Foreign Ministry added that a discussion on arms control issues also took place as well as "some other aspects of the current international agenda."

Russian Presidential Special Envoy for the Middle East, Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov also held a meeting with the Egyptian Ambassador. The parties discussed in detail Middle Eastern issues, including the situation in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict zone, as well as the state of affairs in Libya and Sudan. The diplomats also paid attention to the current issues of Russian-Egyptian multifaceted cooperation "with an emphasis on the importance of maintaining an active political dialogue."

Russia assumed the one-year rotating chairmanship of the 10-member BRICS intergovernmental group on January 1, 2024. On Moscow’s watch, BRICS will carry out over 200 events covering a wide range of issues. The key event of Russia’s chairmanship will be the BRICS summit in October 2024 in Kazan, Tatarstan, in Russia’s Volga region. Egypt joined the association this year.