Egyptian Minister of State for Military Production, Mohamed Morsi, received on Sunday Vice-President of International Business at American arms manufacturer, Lockheed Martin, Ray Piselli, and the corporation’s Chief Executive and Vice-President, Joseph Rank, to discuss co-operation.
Minister Morsi welcomed the Lockheed Martin delegation, noting that his ministry’s primary mission is to meet the needs of the Egyptian armed forces and the police when it comes to ammunition, weapons and equipment.
The ministry’s excess production capacities, the minister said, are also used to manufacture various civilian products and contribute to the implementation of national development projects in Egypt.
Discussions between the minister and the Lockheed Martin delegation covered a wide range of issues, including manufacturing, technological, technical and human capabilities and the capabilities of military production companies and units.
The two sides also discussed a number of fields that can come at the center of co-operation in the coming period.
The Ministry of State for Military Production, the minister said, is interested in benefiting from the expertise of Lockheed Martin in the fields where it operates.
“We are also keen on localizing and transferring to Egypt the latest global technologies in the field of military industries,” the minister said.
He referred to what he described as a ‘real desire’ to conclude a strategic partnership that benefits both sides in the field of advanced defense systems.
Minister Morsi noted that Egypt works to overcome all the challenges that emerged in the past few years, including because of Covid-19.
He praised the economic and structural reforms that were launched in the country, noting that these reforms made Egypt capable of overcoming these challenges.
“These reforms also contributed to proving Egypt’s growing leadership in the fields of security and defense,” Minister Morsi said.
This leadership, he added, was manifested in Egypt’s ability to organize the international exhibition of defense industries, EDEX 2021, at the end of last year.
He praised active participation in the exhibition by the United States, in general, and Lockheed Martin, in particular.
