Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi Arrives in India for Three-Day Visit

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi on a three-day visit to India and to hold talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi with an aim to step up engagement in areas of security, counter-terrorism and trade. It is noted that India and Egypt have a strong economic relationship. India is the sixth largest trading partner of Egypt – the second largest export destination. India’s imports from Egypt were worth USD 1.74 billion during 2014-15. Indian businessmen have invested nearly $3 billion in about 50 companies in Egypt and have given employment opportunities to around 35,000 Egyptians.

PM Modi & Egyptian President signed maritime transport agreement

• India and Egypt have signed an agreement in the area of Maritime Transport to step up co-operation on the seas.
• The agreement was signed after delegation level talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and visiting President of Egypt Abdel Fattah El-Sisi in New Delhi.
• Two countries are agreed to work together to fight drug trafficking, transitional crimes , money laundering and challenges of cyber security.
• Both countries agreed that UNSC needs to be reformed to reflect today’s realities. India and Egypt decided to facilitate greater people-to-people contacts and cultural exchanges. India stands ready to be a reliable partner in fulfilment of Egypt’s developmental, economic and security goals.
• Egypt President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi emphasizes on the need to intensify collaboration between India and Egypt in multi-lateral fora.

India, Egypt to boost the security cooperation

• India and Egypt decided to step up their overall defence and security cooperation to tackle the twin challenges of terrorism and radicalisation besides enhancing economic and trade engagements thereby signalling a major shift in ties.
• The two countries also decided to expand trade and commercial ties holding that there are huge opportunities to exploit untapped economic opportunities in the two countries.
• The two countries agreed on an “action oriented agenda” to drive the engagements in a range of sectors apart from deciding to expand defence trade, training and capacity building.
• The two leaders strongly condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. They considered terrorism to be one of the gravest threats to international peace and security. They reaffirmed their resolve to strengthen cooperation in combating terrorism at all levels. They also reaffirmed their resolve to work together at UN on concluding the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism (CCIT).