Egypt's Sisi promises new parliament by end of 2015

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi said on Sunday that the country will have a new parliament by the end of 2015, calling on the armed forces and police to completely secure the voting process.

Egypt has been without a parliament for about three years, as the one elected in late 2011, months after the ouster of long-time leader Hosni Mubarak, was dissolved in June 2012 by a court order.

"All required legislations for the coming parliamentary elections have been accomplished, and by the end of this year we will have a parliament," the Egyptian president said in his speech during a cultural symposium held by the armed forces in the capital Cairo.

The polls were due to be held from March 21 until May 7, but the constitutional appeals against the newly-drafted election law delayed the process.

President Sisi, who removed former Islamist president Mohamed Morsi as then-army chief in mid-2013 in response to mass protests, is currently holding the country's legislative authority in the absence of a parliament.

"I ask all Egyptians, the political forces, parties and all those concerned, to vote impartially for once for the sake of your country, because the coming parliament will either be a starting point for a better future or the other way round," Sisi said.

After the new constitution and the presidential elections were accomplished, the parliamentary elections represent the third and final phase of the country's future roadmap declared by Sisi on Morsi's ouster.

During his speech, Sisi also talked about the country's foreign policy, stressing that Egypt's ties are balanced and the interests of Egypt govern the country's strategic relations with other states.

"We have and we maintain strategic relations with the United States, China, Russia, France and with any state that wants to have strong ties with Egypt," Sisi stressed. Endit