Ankara seeks to increase trade exchange with Egypt to $15B: Turkish FM

CAIRO – 13 April 2023: Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said that his government will encourage Turkish companies to increase their investments in Egypt, especially in tourism sector.

He added during joint press conference with Egypt’s Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry that Ankara seeks to increase trade exchange with Egypt to $15 billion.

 

“We will diversify our relations with Egypt and develop our relations especially in economy and energy”, Çavuşoğlu said.

The Turkish Foreign Minister stated that cooperation between Egypt and Turkey is important for the interest of the region, and there is agreement between the two countries on many issues.

On the possible impact of joint talks on the Libyan file and the possibility of holding a trilateral meeting grouping Libya, Turkey and Egypt leaders and the influence of such a collaborative spirit in combating terrorism in the Middle East region and countering illegal migration, Cavusoglu said there was a confidence crisis between Libya and Turkey as well as doubts and criticism, but now after the start of dialogue between Egypt and Turkey, hopefully, the same thing will be taking place with Libya.

"There should be full preparedness for the political track and elections at the same time," the Turkish foreign minister said, adding that "our common objective is the unity and safety of the Libyan territories and reaching a political agreement in Libya."

Cavulsolgu asserted that there should be joint work to combat terrorism and create the appropriate circumstances for this objective, adding that Turkey is working to beef up its relations with Egypt and focus on the regional issues, illegal migration and combating terrorism.

In his answer to the same question, Shoukry said there is a free trade agreement that benefited the two countries in the past years and our economic relations are expanding and increasing and the volume of trade exchange between the two countries reached dlr 10 billion and is expected to be upped in the coming phase.

On the possibility of establishing a free trade area between Egypt and Turkey and Cairo's contribution to bringing closer viewpoints between Turkey and Greece, Shoukry said it is possible to set up an industrial zone in Egypt as the Suez Canal Economic Zone is already available for investments of the Turkish side. The Egyptian top diplomat also noted that the Turkish Embassy in Cairo is already familiarized with all facilitation and available opportunities, adding that establishing an industrial zone in Egypt will enable Turkey to get an easy access to the markets in the Middle East region and Africa.

Both Egypt and Turkey have their weight in the region and their economic and political cooperation would be having a great impact, Shoukry reiterated.

The Egyptian diplomat also voiced hope over reaching full understanding and cooperation in the region, noting that there is a great potential for settling the Palestinian problem and overcoming all difficulties and challenges facing it.   

The Turkish foreign minister said that during his visit to Cairo he asked about the possibility of allowing several Turkish institutions to operate again in Egypt.

Speaking during the joint press conference with his Egyptian counterpart, the Turkish foreign minister said that Egypt and Turkey are very important countries in the Mediterranean region, adding that cooperation between the two countries is crucial.

Talking about Libya, he said that Turkey and Libya share identical viewpoints toward various issues.

Turning to the Syrian file, the Turkish foreign minister said that there is a four-way meeting on Syria to attain security and stability in its lands.

When asked about the Palestinian cause, the Turkish top diplomat said that Turkey appreciates Egypt's crucial role in the region, adding that his country supports relentless efforts exerted by both Egypt and Jordan to resolve the Palestinian problem.

He also said that the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) issued a strongly-worded statement about Israel's violations, adding that there is no excuse for what is happening in Palestine.

The Turkish foreign minister, meanwhile, congratulated the Turkish and Egyptian people and the Islamic world on the occasion of Laylat al-Qadr and Eid al-Fitr.