Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Egypt

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Arab Republic of Egypt is the Egyptian government ministry which oversees the foreign relations of Egypt. On 17 July 2014 Sameh Shoukry was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs. History Early history In the 19th century, the ministry was one of the divans established by Muhammad Ali Pasha, known as the 'founder of modern Egypt'. The aim of the ministry was to organize Egypt's internal, and external affairs, and was concerned with trade, and commerce. Later, it became the Divan of Foreign Affairs, and was concerned with trade, and citizen's affairs. It continued to function after the Muhammad Ali's reign, and it was one of the fundamental divans of the state. It was concerned with abolishing slavery, and following up international treaties. During the era of Sa'id Pasha, and Isma'il Pasha, there were some modifications in the ministry, due to the increasing presence of the Europeans in Egypt. Due to the change of rule in Egypt in 1878, the absolute jurisdictions given to rulers were diminished, and the divans were replaced by portfolios. During this period, the foreign portfolio was headed by prominent figures such as Boutros Ghali, who spent the longest period in office from 1894 to 1910.