Türkiye, Egypt open a new page in ties

Türkiye and Egypt have agreed to open a new page in ties after a decade-old tension during a historic visit by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to Cairo, where he had talks with President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi.

The two countries decided to resume the functions of the high-level strategic council at the level of presidents with a joint target to increase the trade volume to $15 billion as soon as possible.

"We are determined to increase the level of the relationship between our countries. We are satisfied to observe the same strong will on the Egyptian side," Erdoğan said at a press conference with el-Sissi after the talks.

The two leaders signed a joint declaration that underlines the beginning of a new era in ties and the importance of the improvement of bilateral dialogue for regional and global issues. The declaration also announced the resumption of the Türkiye-Egypt High-Level Strategic Council.

"We wish to convene the strategic council in a very short period of time in Ankara. I believe this will constitute a milestone in our ties," the Turkish president said. El-Sissi, for his part, informed his intention to come to Türkiye in April upon the invitation of Erdoğan.

On economy, Erdoğan and el-Sissi both outlined their objective to raise the trade volume to $15 billion as well as around $3 billion worth of Turkish investments in Egypt.

"I believe there is serious potential for cooperation in the field of defense industry. Egypt has significant investments in this field. I think we can strengthen our cooperation through joint projects," Erdoğan suggested.

On the bilateral front, el-Sissi also underlined Cairo's willingness to further deepen ties with Türkiye. "All these mean opening a new page in our ties," he said...