The French leader refrained from direct criticism of former army general Sisi, who has cracked down on supporters of ousted Islamist president Mohammed Morsi, as well as on leftists and liberals.

Macron told a joint press conference with Sisi that he had brought up the issue of human rights during their discussions and said he remained “a constant advocate of democratic and social openness”.

But he ruled out conditioning France’s deepening defence and trade ties with Egypt on the issue of rights.

“I think it is more effective to have a policy of dialogue than a policy of boycott which would reduce the effectiveness of one of our partners in the fight against terrorism and for regional stability,” he said.

To force the issue of human rights would be both “ineffective on the subject of human rights and counter-productive in the fight against terrorism, that’s why I won’t do it,” he added.