India and Egypt have elevated their bilateral ties to a “Strategic Partnership” on Wednesday, January 25, 2023. The partnership will cover political, security, defence, energy and economic aspects. Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomed Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, who will be the Chief Guest at the Republic Day celebrations on Thursday.
“India has invited Egypt as a special guest for the G-20 summit which shows our age-old relationship. We have decided that under the India-Egypt strategic partnership, we will create a long-term structure of cooperation on political, security, economic, and scientific areas,” said Prime Minister Modi announcing that the scope for cooperation in Indo-Egypt relations, especially in the fields of defence and security is “unlimited”.
Both sides have agreed to intensify cooperation in regards to the “growing threat” of the abuse of cyber space by extremist forces. MEA Spokesperson Arindam wrote on Twitter, “Delegation level talks led by PM Narendra Modi and President Alsisi of Egypt are underway. Wide-ranging agenda on the table: political & security cooperation, economic engagement & scientific collaboration, cultural & P2P contacts, regional & global developments.”
In his remarks, President El-Sisi pointed at the relation between the two civilizations that date back to antiquity and said Egypt wishes to welcome more Indian tourists. The two teams signed five MoUs covering culture, cooperation on youth matters, cyber security, information and technology (IT) and public broadcasting.
India and Egypt – bilateral ties to focus on political, security, defence, energy and economic aspects
“I have requested Prime Minister Modi to create permanent channels to enhance digital connections between small and medium-scale industries and that will help in improving life of common people. Defence cooperation was part of today’s discussion and our joint military exercise is an example of that cooperation,” said President El-Sisi. Prasar Bharati and National Media Authority of Egypt signed an MoU during the formal ceremony at the Hyderabad House.
President El-Sisi invited PM Modi to visit Egypt and asked for greater air connectivity between New Delhi and Cairo. “We are in agreement that terrorism is the biggest threat to humanity. Both countries also agree that strong steps are required to end cross-border terrorism and for that we have to convince the international community through joint efforts,” said PM Modi. President El-Sisi also stated that India and Egypt have firmed up plans for cooperation in cyber security.
“I have expressed my gratitude to the Prime Minister for inviting Egypt to the G-20 summit and I have assured that Egypt will play a constructive role in the summit. We also discussed the issues before the developing economies in the context of global developments,” said President El-Sisi asking for greater stability in the world economy.
India and Egypt are founding partners of the non-aligned movement in world affairs and has defence ties that date back to the 1960s. The Hindu reported earlier that India had deputed military personnel to work on Egypt’s military aircraft project at Helwan, near the capital Cairo. Prime Minister Modi appreciated that a contingent of Egyptian military personnel will participate in the Republic Day parade in New Delhi on Thursday.
This state visit of President El-Sisi is being described as historic as he is the first Egyptian President to have been invited as the “Chief Guest” at the Republic Day parade of January 26. This elevated bilateral ties to a “Strategic Partnership” between India and Egypt is a positive step forward for the relationship between India and Egypt, and both nations will continue to build on this partnership in the future.
