Egyptian Interior Minister Magdy Abdel Ghaffar said his country welcomes the "development of cooperation with the UN counter-terrorism bodies, especially in exchange of information related to terrorist elements, movement and funding." He made his remarks while meeting with visiting Head of the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism Vladimir Ivanovich Voronkov. Abdel Ghaffar said: “The development of the methods of terrorist attacks that hit a number of countries underlined the Egyptian stance for the need for international political will to confront it.” The UN official had started a visit to Egypt on Saturday to hold talks with a number of prominent officials. Abdel Ghaffar discussed with Voronkov his ministry’s counter-terrorism strategy and its efforts to dismantle extremist cells, the ministry said in a statement. He pointed out that the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East contribute to the spread of terrorism and extremist ideologies. The pressure being exerted on terrorist groups in conflict areas has forced them to flee to other countries. This consequently increases security threats and demands a need to expand information exchange to eliminate them, Abdel-Ghaffar said. For his part, Voronkov expressed his appreciation for the “pivotal role played by the Egyptian government in maintaining stability in the region.” He praised the efforts exerted by the Egyptian Interior Ministry in combating terrorism. He also expressed "his desire to expand the base of security cooperation and information exchange between the concerned UN bodies and the Egyptian Ministry of Interior,” especially given the recent attempts by terrorists to relocate to new areas in the region to execute their plots against Arab and Western countries.