Egypt - Turkey.. Breakthrough and Hope

Erdogan in Egypt... news that we did not imagine reading it in the current years. For more than 12 years, relations have been tense between Egypt and Turkey.

This week, Egypt witnessed a historic visit by President Erdogan, and he was received very warmly by President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi to meet again and confront the Zionist aggression and injustice in Gaza, and Israel’s attempts to exterminate the Palestinians or forcibly displace them and liquidate the Palestinian cause.

This visit comes at a very important time, when we need the greatest degree of cooperation and unity, defending together our cause and the rights and sanctities of a Muslim people.

President Erdogan's visit to Egypt represents a major development in the region, due to the fear of an expanding circle of war that has begun to spread, whether in Iraq, Yemen, or southern Lebanon.

Egypt and Turkey are the two most powerful countries in the region, our unity and cooperation represent a breakthrough and hope. They are one of the pillars of stability in the region, and together we can defuse the raging wars and save our people in Palestine from the genocidal war that Israel is waging to get rid of the Palestinian cause.

The relations between the two countries are old and close for more than thousand years, and the civilizational and cultural heritage is great.

Many of Egyptian families have Turkish origin, and many Turkish families have Egyptian origin, and there are trade relations through which we seek to have $15 billion trade exchange in the coming years, as Egypt is Turkey's first trading partner in Africa, the two countries signed a number of agreements and memorandums of understanding. The two presidents also signed a joint declaration on restructuring the high-level Strategic Cooperation Council meetings between Egypt and Turkey,” a step that establishes a new phase in bilateral relations between the two countries, and leads to an increase in Turkish investments in Egypt, as President Erdogan said that they currently amount to $3 billion.

It is also an important step for close relations and great cooperation in all industrial, commercial and tourism fields, especially since Turkey is one of the most important destinations for Egyptian exports, and it is a favorite tourist destination for Egyptians, Egypt is an important tourist destination for Turks as well. 

Despite the tense relations, communication between the two countries have not stop, President Sisi confirmed this in his speech, saying that during the past ten years, popular communication between the two countries continued, while trade and investment relations witnessed steady growth.

President Erdogan also stressed his country's desire to increase trade and industrial cooperation with Egypt, and cooperation in the field of defense industries, noting that the humanitarian tragedy in Gaza topped the summit's agenda, pointingboutbthat Ankara is ready to work with Cairo to reconstruct Gaza.

The initial outcomes are promising and encourage us to welcome resumption of Egyptian-Turkish relations. We welcome President Erdogan in Egypt. President Sisi will visit turkey in April so that bridges of friendship continue for the favor of the two brotherly peoples.