In numbers…this is what is counted on in Sisi’s visit to Turkey | Economy

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi is visiting the Turkish capital Ankara, his first official visit to Turkey since taking office in 2014.

This visit comes after a period of tense relations between the two countries, with a focus on cooperation in the fields of energy and defense, as well as developments related to the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip, according to Bloomberg.

It aims to sign about 20 cooperation agreements between Egypt and Turkey, with a clear goal of increasing the volume of trade exchange between the two countries to $15 billion, up from the current figure of about $10 billion, according to the Turkish Anadolu Agency.

The talks between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, his guest and the participating delegations are expected to address the export of liquefied natural gas from Egypt to Turkey, as part of Ankara’s plans to become a hub for energy supplies to Europe.

Turkey is also seeking to reactivate freight shipping between the Turkish port of Mersin and Alexandria in Egypt, which could boost logistical cooperation between the two countries.

In terms of defense cooperation, Turkey seeks to increase its exports of drones and armored vehicles, which are among the products Ankara is targeting to strengthen its presence in the Egyptian market.

The Turkish President visited Cairo last February, in his first visit to Egypt since 2012.

During their meeting in Cairo, the Egyptian and Turkish presidents stressed their desire to open a new page in relations between the two countries. At the time, Sisi said that his country would increase the value of economic cooperation with Turkey to $15 billion in the coming years.

After deteriorating following the overthrow of President Mohamed Morsi in 2013, relations between the Turkish and Egyptian presidents have witnessed a noticeable improvement for about two years, and the two countries have taken steps towards reconciliation, with their positions converging on many regional issues, especially the Israeli war on Gaza.

Despite the political crisis, trade relations between the two countries remained good, as Turkey is Egypt’s fifth trading partner, while the latter is Turkey’s first economic partner in Africa. The past few years have witnessed mutual visits by officials and delegations from the two countries.