Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi says he will leave office in 2030 and rules out changing the constitution to extend his rule

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi said his current term will end in 2030 and described his departure from office as “completely settled,” ruling out further constitutional changes to extend his presidency.

“The coming period, 2030, will be the end of my term as head of state, if I live that long,” el-Sisi said. “This is completely settled and will not be discussed.”

He said he was making the statement more than 40 months in advance so that no one could accuse him of preparing a family member or relative to succeed him. “No, no, no. Nothing like that,” he said, adding that Egypt was “a very big country” where such an arrangement could not happen.

El-Sisi also praised Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait for their support after Egypt’s 2013 political upheaval. He said Gulf states sent oil, gas, cooking gas and wheat to Egypt without charge and said he would not be embarrassed to publicly thank them for that assistance.

Turning to current Gulf security, el-Sisi said it was “absolutely unacceptable” for Saudi Arabia’s security or stability to be harmed. He said Egypt would take whatever measures were necessary to defend the kingdom if Saudi Arabia requested assistance.

El-Sisi called on Egypt’s parliament to hold an emergency session to authorize action if Cairo were formally asked to intervene, making clear that any Egyptian move would be conditional on a Saudi request.

His remarks came amid heightened regional security concerns following recent attacks on Saudi Arabia. El-Sisi has repeatedly described Saudi and wider Gulf security as closely linked to Egypt’s national security.