NEW DELHI: Egypt’s foreign minister Badr Abdelatty will visit India this week for the first bilateral strategic dialogue, during which the two sides are expected to review their relations and discuss the situation in West Asia, people familiar with the matter said on Monday.
This will be Abdelatty’s first visit to India since he was appointed foreign minister last year. The strategic dialogue with his counterpart S Jaishankar is a follow-up to the decision by the two countries to upgrade their relationship to a strategic partnership in 2023.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi’s visit to India in 2023, when he was the chief guest at the Republic Day celebrations, gave a major fillip to bilateral ties and the two sides had decided to increase two-way trade from $7 billion to $12 billion in five years.
The strategic dialogue between Jaishankar and Abdelatty will be an opportunity to review bilateral relations, assess the implementation of decisions made during Sisi’s visit to India and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s trip to Egypt in 2023, and discuss the situation in West Asia following the Israel-Hamas ceasefire, the people said on condition of anonymity.
Egypt has been a key player in the behind-the-scenes negotiations that led to the recent truce and the dialogue will be an opportunity for the two sides to exchange notes on the regional situation, the people said.
{{/usCountry}}Egypt has been a key player in the behind-the-scenes negotiations that led to the recent truce and the dialogue will be an opportunity for the two sides to exchange notes on the regional situation, the people said.
{{/usCountry}}Besides trade and investment, defence and security cooperation are expected to figure in the dialogue, the people said.
Around 55 Indian companies have invested more than $3.75 billion in various sectors in Egypt and provide direct and indirect employment to about 38,000 Egyptians. The Egyptian side has offered a special area for Indian industries in the Suez Canal Economic Zone, and this matter is expected to be raised by Abdelatty during the talks, the people said.
The Egyptian side is also keen to enhance cooperation in ICT, pharmaceutical industries, vaccines, renewable energy including green hydrogen, higher education, and tourism, including direct flights between Cairo and New Delhi.
The Egyptian arm of India’s Everest Kanto Cylinder is working to establish the first factory in Africa and Egypt to produce compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders, with financial backing from the National Bank of Egypt (NBE). The project, backed by a loan of 954 million Egyptian pounds from NBE, will cut down imports and bolster energy security. Production at the facility, to be located in the Suez Canal Economic Zone, is set to begin by the end of 2025.