World Bulletin/News Desk

A delegation of U.S. officials met on Wednesday with Egyptian Assistant Foreign Minister for African Affairs Hamdi Loza to discuss a number of shared African concerns.

"The U.S. delegation told Egyptian officials that Washington looks positively at latest developments in Egypt," the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

It said U.S. President Barak Obama's phone call on Tuesday to congratulate President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi on his inauguration.

"The Egyptian side assured the delegation that Egypt will initiate an economic reform program, expressing hopes that the U.S. and European partners will help in this regard," added the statement.

Loza said Egypt would participate in an upcoming U.S.-Africa summit to be hosted by Washington in August.

He added that the Foreign Ministry will ensure that the Egyptian private sector would be part of the event with the aim of bolstering Egyptian-American trade relations.

Egypt was excluded from a similar summit last year.

The American delegation comprises, among others, Thomas Shannon and David Thorne, both counselors of U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry.

Thorne, according to the Foreign Ministry's statement, lauded the talks as fruitful and said the delegation would listen to the economic vision of Egypt's officials.

He reiterated, the statement added, his government's readiness to help in putting this economic vision to effect.

The members of the U.S. delegation met late on Tuesday with former foreign minister Amr Moussa who headed a panel that amended the 2012 constitution.

Moussa was also an advisor to al-Sisi campaign.

S0urces at the U.S. embassy in Cairo, meanwhile, said the delegation also met a number of other Egyptian officials and politicians in their bid to form a comprehensive view about the future in Egypt and also deliver a message that Washington closely follows what is happening in this country.

The sources did not, however, reveal the names of the other officials and politicians the delegation met in this regard.

Following al-Sisi's electoral victory earlier this month, Washington said it looked forward to working with the new Egyptian president.

Egypt's relations with the U.S. deteriorated following the ouster of elected president Mohamed Morsi by the army, under al-Sisi, last year.