EU-AL summit finishes without breakthrough agreement on migration: The EU-Arab League summit closed yesterday without a formal agreement between European and Arab leaders on migration and security coordination, with an Ittihadiya spokesman saying in a statement that delegates had agreed on the need to deepen existing partnerships.

Both the Arab League and the European Union positioned the summit as a success: Both President Abdel Fattah El Sisi and European Council President Donald Tusk struck positive tones about the conference during the final press conference. El Sisi described the summit as a “new milestone for the deepening of historical relations” between the two regions, while Tusk said it will herald a “new chapter of cooperation.”

But there was a moment of tension on human rights: An awkward exchange of words over human rights occurred during the final press conference, the FT writes. “You are not going to lecture us about humanity,” El Sisi said in response to a question about Egypt’s human rights record. “Respect our values and ethics, as we do yours.” El Sisi’s answer generated applause among Egyptian journalists, to which Tusk remarked (with a hint of sarcasm we suspect): “I really appreciate how enthusiastic your media are… Congratulations.”

El Sisi held bilateral talks with European and Arab officials yesterday. The president sat with the President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker, who praised Egypt’s efforts to fight extremism and tackle illegal migration and expressed eagerness to increase EU investments in the country. Italian PM Giuseppe Conte, meanwhile, discussed with El Sisi the ongoing investigation into the death of Italian student Giulio Regeni, as well as investment opportunities in the Suez Canal Area Development Project. El Sisi also held meetings with Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah and Lebanese PM Saad Hariri.

The international press is fairly sceptical about the conference’s achievements: The WSJ notes that no formal agreements were reached on the issues discussed, while the FT says that the disagreements on display during the final press conference “underlined the considerable political obstacles to closer cooperation between the regions. Forbes meanwhile writes that any potential for progress was held back by the ongoing Brexit negotiations between the UK and the EU.

To keep it all in context, we quote Luxembourg’s prime minister: “If you think that by seeing each other for 24 hours in Sharm El-Sheikh and it’s peace in the world and in the region, then you believe in Father Christmas.”

And in what we hope is the last piece of news out of the Sharm summit, Qatar downgraded its delegation after Egypt sent them a half-hearted invitation, Bloomberg writes. (If this sounds to you like a scene out of Mean Girls, you’re not wrong.) The seaside resort town was also home to informal Brexit talks that failed to deliver much in the way of progress, Reuters reports.

The next summit will be held in Brussels in 2022, according to the official statement.