Kerry heads to Egypt before new Iran talks

US Secretary of State John Kerry leaves for a key economic conference in Egypt, followed by further talks in Switzerland on Iran’s suspect nuclear program.

Kerry is due to arrive Friday in the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm al-Sheikh to attend an international economic conference, set to burnish President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi’s global credentials.

Secretary of State John Kerry testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, March 11, 2015, before the Senate Foreign Relation Committee. (Photo credit: AP/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

US Secretary of State John Kerry testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, March 11, 2015, before the Senate Foreign Relation Committee. (Photo credit: AP/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

Egypt hopes the foreign investor conference will jump-start its battered economy while showcasing international support for Sissi as he battles radical Islamist opponents.

Kerry is due to meet with Sissi — a former general who led the army’s ouster of elected Islamist president Mohamed Morsi in 2013 and then resigned from the military to stand in the 2014 elections. Kerry could also meet with other Arab and European leaders.

— AFP