India, Egypt hold talks to deepen ties further

India and Egypt today reviewed entire expanse of their bilateral relationship with a focus on boosting cooperation in areas of security, trade and investment.

The review was carried out by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and her Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry during the 7th meeting of the India-Egypt joint commission here.

In a tweet, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said the two sides reviewed progress in the areas of political, trade and investment, science and technology, cyber security, capacity building, security, space and culture.

Egypt has traditionally been one of India's most important trading partners in the African continent.

Indian businessmen have invested nearly USD 3 billion in about 50 companies in Egypt and have given employment opportunities to around 35,000 Egyptians, according to official data.

President of Egypt Abdel Fattah al-Sisi visited India in September, 2016 during which the two countries decided to step up their overall defence and security cooperation to tackle the twin challenges of terrorism and radicalisation.

Egypt is keen on India's participation in the Suez Canal Economic Zone, particularly in sectors such as petro-chemicals, energy, agriculture, healthcare, education, skills and information technology.