Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi will visit the United States in September to attend a meeting of the U.N. General Assembly, his first trip there as the country's head of state, the country's official news agency reported Wednesday.
MENA said Sisi also will attend a United Nations environmental summit on Sept. 25 and deliver a speech. It added that he is expected to hold meetings with other world leaders - but it did not say if he'll meet with U.S. President Barack Obama.
Egypt's relations with U.S. have been strained since the downfall of one-time ally Hosni Mubarak in the country's 2011 uprising.
U.S. has refused to fund all of the $1.5 billion in annual military and economic aid that Washington usually sends to Cairo after the military ouster of Islamist President Mohammed Morsi last year.
Sisi reportedly turned down a previous invitation to attend an African-American summit in the U.S., with Egyptian daily newspapers saying it was a reaction to receiving a belated invitation from the White House. Prime Minister Ibrahim Mahlab represent Sisi at the summit.
The U.S. has supported Egypt's role in mediating the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
