Yes, sir.
Margot.
Oh, absolutely.
Do you rate her as great or just good?
Great.
Great, what? Great looking. [Laughter]
Great everything.
You ready? Well, thank you very much. A friend of mine is, uh -- he was a great general. He's a great president. And it's an honor to have him. And, uh, Mr. President, we have a lot to talk about. So I thought maybe the press might want to ask us a couple of questions after you say a few words. But we had a -- a wonderful time, and I think we've made a lot of progress so far in Switzerland and Davos.
Made a speech, it's being reviewed quite nicely and, uh, we have a fantastic relationship with Egypt. And the president will call and ask for things and we always are able to work it out. But it's -- the relationship's been very strong right from the beginning, from years ago. So I want to thank you very much.
Please.
[Via interpreter] Allow me, Mr. President, at the beginning, to extend my thanks and appreciation for you for allowing this opportunity to happen and to have this meeting with you. I'd like also to congratulate you on a year full of achievements since you came back to office.
Thank you.
[Via interpreter] I like also to thank you, Mr. President, and congratulate you for all the achievement -- achievements that you have done on one of the toughest finals in our part of the world. This is Gaza. I said it before, I reiterate it now, I re-emphasize it before our colleagues and before the media, uh, but for President Trump, we wouldn't have reached an agreement on Gaza.
[Via interpreter] I really would ask you, Mr. President, to continue paying your attention and care -- argue -- argue -- uh, your attention and care, uh, for this file, so that uh, the plan should be implemented fully. Uh, surprising you've announced the second phase of the Gaza plan. This is very important that it comes forward and, uh, it -- it takes effect.
[Via interpreter] And on our part, we'll be standing very ready to provide everything that we can to make this a success. Um, as for the Council of Peace, it is our pleasure to be on the Council of -- of Peace -- the Board -- um, the Board of Peace. Um, we -- we are very happy to be on the Board of Peace and, uh, we are supporting and very happy to be there, backing up every effort that can bring about peace in our part of the world and, uh, globally as well.
[Via interpreter] I'd like to thank you, Mr. President, for your support us, uh, in an existential issue. And this is the grand Renaissance Dam and the River Nile. And for the record, and before the press, I'd like just to remind everybody that your Excellency did a lot of effort in this regard -- in this file, uh, in your first term in office and you almost had a deal and you've done -- you did everything in your power at the time to get this deal done.
[Via interpreter] So, President, accept our highest appreciation and respect.
Well, thank you very much. They're talking about the dam that's been built in Ethiopia. It's one of the largest dams in the world, the largest dam in Africa, but it's one of the largest dams anywhere in the world. It was financed by the United States and it basically blocks the Nile River. You know, when I think of -- when I think of Egypt, I think about the Nile, more than any other place in all fairness, but it goes through Ethiopia and a dam was built, a very big one, very, very big one, massive.
And it was something that should have been talked about a long time ago, when they were building it and financing it. So I got involved at the end of my first term and I was going to have a deal. We were going to -- pretty close to a deal. Then we had a rigged election and I left. And of course Biden didn't do anything about it because he didn't know -- he didn't know he was alive.
And, uh, you know, I come back and it's become a very dangerous issue, the dam, and I'll see if I can get that back on track. We were all set to make a deal. We were going to do a joint venture of sorts and it would have been good. I think it would have been good for both, but it's a dangerous thing. They built a dam where somebody's not getting the water that they are supposed to get and that they've gotten for a million years.
And all of a sudden, the water flow is blocked by a very massive dam. I wouldn't be happy about it. And you know, you have a very strong leader in the president, and I hear you have a strong leader in Ethiopia too. I don't know him as well as I know you, but he's a strong guy and I'm going to try bringing the two of you together, see if we can make a deal.
[Via interpreter] I appreciate that.
I think he understands me, right? I think he understands English better than we do. You know, a lot of these guys that don't understand, they understand. They understand it very well, but I think we'll be able to get -- do something about the dam. The dam is a big problem, but we'll be able to do something.
Uh, most importantly, great leader, great guy and, uh, we're there for each other. We've know each other right from before Hillary. It was before Hillary. We met during the campaign with Hillary and we met at a hotel. She was supposed to meet with the president and I was supposed to meet. I went first and after he met me, he didn't want to meet her.
And I said, I like that guy. But we had a -- but we've had -- from that moment on, we had -- that was before the election.
Yes.
We've always had a great relationship and it continues stronger than ever. Thank you very much. Appreciate it.
Thank you.
Thank you, everybody. Thank you very much.
[Crosstalk]
[Inaudible] committed to being permanent members of the Board of Peace?
Well, we're going to have a lot. We, uh, have a lot of great people that want to join. It's going to be the most prestigious board ever formed. Uh, the president is a member. We have, uh, major countries and some need, uh, parliamentary approval. But for the most part, uh, everybody wants to be on. I have -- I have a little bit of the opposite problem; people want to be on and we didn't ask them.
They want to get on. But we'll look at the countries. So we're going to have -- it's -- I think it's the greatest board ever formed and we call it the Board of Peace. That's what it is. It's a Board of Peace. And it started on Gaza. And I appreciate what you said on Gaza because it's true, if we weren't involved, there'd be no peace.
It's peace -- we have peace in the Middle East now. And you might have Hamas where you have a little flame here and there, but basically, that'll be taken out. If they don't get rid of the guns, then they'll be -- uh, then they will be very unhappy people. You know, it's going to -- we'll have no choice; they will be eliminated.
They made a deal to get out, you have, uh, Hezbollah in Lebanon. We have to do something there. And they're causing a lot of problems. But those are small. We actually have peace in the Middle East and the president was very instrumental. He really helped us, one of the most -- uh, we've had great help from a number of countries, but Egypt has been great.
The president's been great. And we have peace in the Middle East. It's an amazing thing. Nobody thought we'd ever see that now. I would say, if we didn't bomb the Iran nuclear plant, they would have had a nuclear weapon within two months. Uh, you would not have peace in the Middle East. You wouldn't be able to. Nobody would be able to do that, but that's -- that's what gave us peace in the Middle East.
Thank you very much, everybody.
[Crosstalk]
What prompted you to take military off the table for Greenland?
We'll see what happens. The military's not on the table. I don't -- I don't think it'll be necessary. I really don't.
OK.
I think people are going to use better judgment and use their best judgment. And I don't think -- uh, that will not be necessary.
[Crosstalk]
Thank you very much, everybody.
Thank you, sir.
Did my wife --