Egypt, Azerbaijan sign MoUs in culture, water resources in Baku summit

CAIRO – 28 November 2023: Egypt and Azerbaijan signed on Saturday a number of MoUs between the relevant government sectors of the two countries in the fields of culture and water resources in the presence of the two countries’ leaders.

Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and his Azerbaijani counterpart, Ilham Aliyev witnessed the signing of the MoUs at a summit meeting in the Azerbaijani capital of Baku, the Egyptian Presidency said in a statement.

Sisi and Aliyev also witnessed the singing of MoUs between the Egyptian Ministry of Trade and Industry and Azerbaijani Ministry of Economy.

They also discussed enhancing cooperation in various fields, including energy, construction, infrastructure, transport, pharmaceutical industries, tourism and culture.

Bilateral relations

Sisi and Aliyev affirmed the importance of enhancing trade exchange and economic partnerships between the private sectors of the two countries by establishing a joint businessmen council.

They also discussed enhancing cooperation between the two sides in a number of sectors, given the huge potentials of the two countries and multiple cooperation opportunities.

These fields of cooperation especially include new and renewable energy as well as natural gas in light of Egypt’s endeavors to become a regional energy hub, the statement said.

The discussions also discussed means of enhancing bilateral relations at all levels, the Presidency said.

In this regard, Aliyev hailed the path of economic reform in Egypt, which had led to a remarkable and continuous improvement in the Egyptian economy indicators.

The presidents also affirmed the importance of building on the deep friendly and historic relations between Egypt and Azerbaijan on the official and popular levels as a firm base of developing cooperation in fields of mutual concern.

This would lead to a qualitative leap in cooperation between the two countries and the enhancement of their political dialogue in a way that achieves their mutual interests, the Presidency added.

Aliyev, for his part, affirmed Azerbaijan’s keenness to continue boosting relations between the two countries and their cooperation and coordination at all levels.

This comes especially in light of Egypt’s pivotal role as a pillar of stability, security, and peace in the Middle East and Africa, the Azerbaijani leader affirmed.

Regional, int’l issues

During the meeting, Sisi and Aliyev discussed developments of various regional and international issues of mutual concern.

In this regard, the Azerbaijani president praised Egypt’s positive role regarding working to achieve political settlement for the ongoing crises in its regional surrounding.

The two sides highlighted the importance of backing the efforts of political settlement in Syria, continuing working in the file of Syrian reconstruction, eliminating terrorist groups, and supporting the state institutions.

This should come in a way that preserves the unity of the Syrian lands, meet the aspirations of the Syrian people, and end their suffering, the two sides affirmed.

On Libya, Sisi reviewed Egypt’s vision on achieving Libyan settlement as well as the Egyptian efforts to support the political, constitutional, and economic tracks in the country.

They also discussed the repercussions of the Russia-Ukraine crisis on the international level and also exchanged visions regarding the developments of the Palestinian cause.

Counterterrorism

The discussions also included efforts of combating terrorism and extremist thought, provided that the phenomenon represents a real threat to the endeavors of achieving development in the region and the world.

The Egyptian president affirmed the necessity for concerted efforts by the international community to besiege the terrorism scourge at all levels, including regarding financing terrorist groups and providing weapons to the terrorist elements.

Aliyev praised the comprehensive approach that Egypt has followed in its war against terrorism by addressing the roots of the problem through economic and social development and the fight against extremist thought that leads to terrorism.

President Sisi expressed his sincere condolences and sympathy on behalf of the Egyptian people for the victims of the shooting at the Azerbaijani embassy in Tehran.

Sisi wished a speedy recovery for the injured and expressed solidarity with Azerbaijan in this painful incident, which reaffirms the importance of renouncing extremism, violence and terrorism, the spokesman added.

Sisi arrived in Baku on Friday in an official visit as the first Egyptian president to visit Azerbaijan.

During his visit, Sisi discussed maximizing cooperation and joint investments with a number of businessmen and CEOs of major companies in Azerbaijan.

The president engaged in an open dialogue with the heads and representatives of Azerbaijani companies, which reviewed their plans to invest in Egypt or expand their existing projects in a number of fields.

Egypt and Azerbaijan have signed dozens of MoUs since the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries in 1992.

The volume of trade exchange between the two countries increased by 73 percent in 2022, according to news reports.