De Villepin will meet with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak on Saturday morning, according to an Egyptian government official.

The French foreign minister was met at the airport by his Egyptian counterpart Ahmed Maher.

De Villepin enjoys wide popularity in Egypt for his strong anti-war stance in the United Nations Security Council during the seven-month diplomatic tussle that preceded the US-led invasion on Iraq on March 20.

Egypt is the first stop for de Villepin in a three-day regional that will include Syria, Lebanon and Saudi Arabia.

The regional tour "is in the framework of the coordination and the regular cooperation that we have with these countries and comes at an important period for the region," said the French foreign ministry's spokeswoman Cecile Pozzo di Borgo on Thursday.

De Villepin is scheduled to speak in Cairo on Saturday about his country's vision of the future of relations with the Mediterranean region and the Middle East.

SPACE.WIRE