Egyptian envoy says El -Sisi’s India visit will be a golden opportunity to forge new partnership
Egyptian envoy says El -Sisi’s India visit will be a golden opportunity to forge new partnership
Capital News | 17th January 2023
By AGENCIES
For the first time, a leader from Egypt will be the chief guest at India’s Republic day, this year. Calling the visit ‘historic’, the envoy added that Egypt and India can see eye to eye on several key global issues.
“So I truly think that this is a golden opportunity to forge a new kind of partnership between Egypt and India under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Sisi that even surpasses the heyday in the 1950s and the 1960s based on many common elements and pillars of understanding between both countries. Bilaterally we have a growing relationship when it comes to trade, when it comes to investment, these are growing by the day and they will reach new potentials over the coming years”, the Egyptian envoy added.
“You know that last September Defence Minister Rajnath Singh was in Egypt and held bilateral talks with his counterpart from the Egyptian side, as well as with the president of Egypt. And as we are speaking now, the joint exercises for Special Forces taking place here in India. So, the relationship is going day by day and we have a joint working group on defence issues that is going to be held very soon”, said the envoy.
On the wheat export ban, the envoy said that he completely understands India’s position on the ban hoping the ban to be lifted soon.
“When it comes to the issue of wheat, we do hope that India will soon lift the ban that is imposed on the export of wheat. We do understand the reasons why this ban was put in the first place because of the weather conditions that we have seen in the year 2022. But we do hope that this is going to be lifted sometime soon so that India can resume its exports of wheat to Egypt”, said the envoy.
Highlighting the importance of food security, the envoy said that Egypt would be interested in playing a constructive role in Securing food security in India.
On India’s stance in the Russia – Ukraine crisis, the envoy said that he has been ‘personally watching India’s position and ‘that there is a lot to be discussed between Egypt and India’.
“Egypt is a very strategic location and it is not as opposed to the population size of 100 million, which is small relative to the size of the domestic Market in India. But you can tap into a market of also 1.3 billion people from Egypt. These are the people of the European Union with which we have a free trade agreement, the people of the Middle East with which we also have a free trade agreement and the people of the African continent, with which you have a free trade agreement. So even though Egypt is relative to India as a small domestic market of 100 million, but it is a springboard to a market of more than 1.3 billion people”, said the envoy.
Talking further about India’s G20 Presidency which Egypt has been invited as a Guest country, the envoy said that there are many global issues that Egypt and India look eye to eye and will jointly address.