Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi arrived in Ankara on Wednesday afternoon, marking his first visit to Turkey since assuming office in 2014. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan welcomed El-Sisi at Esenboğa Airport.
Upon arrival, both leaders met briefly at the airport’s Hall of Honor before travelling together to the Turkish Presidential Complex in the same official vehicle.
An official reception ceremony was held for El-Sisi upon his arrival at the complex.
El-Sisi’s “historic visit to Turkey,” comes at the invitation of Erdogan, ushers in a new phase in the friendship and cooperation between the two countries, both bilaterally and at the level of the region, said a statement by the Egyptian presidency earlier today.
“I am deeply pleased with my first visit to the Republic of Turkey and my meeting with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan,” El-Sisi wrote on his official Facebook page on Wednesday.
El-Sisi added that Egypt and Turkey are bound by deep-rooted historical and popular ties, and have enjoyed strong political relations since the establishment of the Republic of Turkey by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk.
“My visit today, following President Erdogan’s visit to Cairo, reflects our shared will to begin a new phase of friendship and cooperation between Egypt and Turkey,” he added.
This new phase, El-Sisi noted, reflects the pivotal roles both nations play in their respective regions and the broader international landscape, fulfilling the aspirations and hopes of both nations’ peoples.
During the visit, El-Sisi will hold in-depth discussions with Erdogan at Beştepe, aiming to strengthen their bilateral and regional relationships amid significant challenges that require joint consultation and coordination, according to the presidency statement.
Sisi’s visit builds on the progress made during Erdogan’s trip to Egypt in February, which was the first in over a decade, and ushers in a new phase in the friendship and cooperation between both nations, the Egyptian presidency said.
El-Sisi and Erdogan are expected to co-chair the first meeting of the High-level Strategic Cooperation Council, which was established by the Joint Declaration signed during Erdogan’s Cairo visit.
This council will work on enhancing bilateral relations across various sectors.
“All aspects of the Turkey-Egypt relations will be reviewed, and joint steps that could be taken in the upcoming period to further improve the bilateral cooperation will be addressed at the council meeting,” a statement by the Turkish presidency said.
The meeting, set to be held in Ankara, is expected to include the signing of several memorandums of understanding on various cooperative areas, Egypt’s presidential spokesman said.
Furthermore, both leaders will also address regional and international issues of mutual concern, including efforts to establish a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, address the ongoing humanitarian crisis endured by Palestinians, and de-escalate tensions in the Middle East.
This will be their second summit since Ankara and Cairo began mending relations following the decade-long diplomatic rift after Mohamed Morsi’s 2013 ouster as president of Egypt.
Earlier this year, Cairo hosted the first summit, marking Erdogan’s first visit to Egypt since 2012.
The high-level meetings between El-Sisi and Erdogan marked the end of extensive diplomatic and security efforts, as both nations found their shared economic and political interests outweighed their ideological differences.
During their Cairo meeting, the two leaders agreed to raise trade exchange to $15 billion over the next few years, enhance joint investments, and explore new fields of cooperation between the two countries.
Trade between Egypt and Turkey has significantly increased over the past two years, following almost a decade of strained relations, according to the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE).
The volume of trade exchange between Egypt and Turkey jumped by 82 percent during the fiscal year 2021-2022 to approximately $6.78 billion, marking its highest level in the past 10 years, CBE data showed.
Source: Ahram Online
