In first since 11 years, Turkey, Egypt decide to expand bilateral ties
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This marks the first visit by a Turkish Foreign Minister to Egypt in 11 years as a result of the 2013 coup that overthrew president Mohamed Morsi.
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Turkish FM Mevlut Cavusoglu and Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry during their meeting at Tahrir Palace in Cairo on March 19, 2023 (Twitter)
In a positive turn of events, Turkey and Egypt announced on Saturday that they have agreed to expand their diplomatic ties after the hiatus that followed the 2013 change of regime in Egypt.
In a press briefing after convening in Cairo with his Egyptian counterpart Sameg Shoukry, Turkish Foreign Minister Cavusoglu told reporters: "We agreed to maximize our diplomatic relations."
He continued, "We have evaluated what steps we will take in the next process. I invited him [Shoukry] to Ankara. I said that I wanted to host him, especially during the month of Ramadan."
This marks the first visit by a Turkish Foreign Minister to Egypt in 11 years. Shoukry's visits to Adana and Mersin after the February 6 earthquakes were the first in 11 years by an Egyptian Foreign Minister as well.
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"We were expecting the highest level of the announcement. If the (Turkish and Egyptian presidents') meeting is delayed after the election (in Turkey), we will consult again. We will decide on this soon. But we have already announced at the news conference that we have started this process," Cavusoglu added.
Bilateral business building
Regarding the topics discussed, Cavusoglu disclosed that regional matters were spoken about and views were exchanged followed by a meeting between delegations.
"In other words, we touched on all matters from energy, shipping, transportation to our companies, and investments here," he specified, adding that topics regarding "energy, logistics, education, and culture" were also discussed.
Egypt expressed the desire for Turkish firms to invest more in the country as Cavusoglu confirmed that the bilateral trade volume nears $10 billion at the moment.
Another topic that was discussed between the two was liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports, which Cavusoglu said its balance lies in Egypt's favor.
"We want to make a long-term LNG agreement. Because, thanks to our LNG terminals, we are currently exporting gas to southeast European countries and Balkan countries. Therefore, Egyptian gas can be exported to third countries via Türkiye," Turkey's top diplomat indicated.
Establishing a JETCO (Joint Economic and Trade Commission) mechanism between both nations was brought up during the meeting, as the last one was discussed back in 1996.
"We decided to expand our cooperation, especially in renewable energy and solar energy," Cavusoglu said.
Turkey as a mediator
Opinions concerning regional issues were "openly and clearly" exchanged as well.
Read more: Egyptian FM lands in Syria for first time in a decade, meets Al-Assad
According to Cavusoglu, who referred to the argument between Egypt and Ethiopia over an Ethiopian dam that could cross with Egypt's share of the Nile River, Turkey advised it could serve as a mediator.
"We discussed Libya in a little more detail. We agree that we are not rivals in Libya and that we should work together for the stability of Libya. We will intensify our consultations on this issue as well," he concluded.
Last month, Egypt sent five military planes loaded with emergency medical aid to assist rescuers in Syria and Turkey in treating the wounded from the devastating earthquake which has left the death toll in Turkey alone exceeding 49,500.
