Cairo, Tashkent keen to promote trade, economic, investment links
Foreign Minister Badr Abdel-Aati held an extensive round of talks on Saturday with Uzbekistan’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Bakhtiyor Saidov, focusing on ways to boost bilateral relations and exchange views on regional and international issues of mutual concern.
At the outset of the talks, Abdel-Aati welcomed Saidov’s visit, describing it as the first by an Uzbek foreign minister to Egypt, reflecting the growing momentum in relations between the two countries.
Abdel-Aati praised the recent high-level exchanges of visits between the two sides, which underscore the shared political will to deepen co-operation across various sectors. He also stressed the importance of maintaining regular consultation and coordination mechanisms and ensuring the periodic convening of bilateral co-operation frameworks, Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ambassador Tamim Khallaf said.
The two foreign ministers reviewed opportunities to enhance economic, trade, and investment co-operation as a cornerstone of the strategic partnership sought by both countries. Abdel-Aati asserted the importance of translating the existing political understanding into tangible projects and investments, particularly in the sectors of agriculture, energy, infrastructure, mining, automotive manufacturing, chemicals, tourism, food industries, logistics, and maritime and air connectivity.
The Egyptian chief diplomat also underscored the importance of expanding co-operation in the pharmaceutical sector to support the entry of Egyptian products into Central Asian markets. He called for facilitating the registration procedures of Egyptian medicines in Uzbekistan, while enhancing co-operation in training, capacity building, and the transfer of technical expertise.
In this context, Abdel-Aati highlighted the importance of accelerating the establishment of the Egyptian-Uzbek Chamber of Commerce and the Joint Business Council to help increase trade and investment exchange between the two countries. He also pointed to Egypt’s strategic geographic location and its extensive network of free trade agreements with various international markets.
According to the Foreign Ministry spokespman, the talks also addressed a number of regional and international developments, particularly the Palestinian issue, in addition to an exchange of views on the latest developments regarding US-Iran negotiations.
For his part, Saidov praised the depth of the friendly relations between Egypt and Uzbekistan and expressed his aspiration to further advance bilateral ties across various fields in the coming period. He also commended Egypt’s important and constructive role in supporting regional security and stability.
At the conclusion of the talks, the two sides signed a memorandum of understanding on co-operation between the Egyptian Institute for Diplomatic Studies and its Uzbek counterpart. They also inked another memo on a co-operation programme between the foreign ministries of the two countries.
