Egypt’s Minister of Petroleum Tarek El-Molla headed on Sunday to Ramallah and Israel to have talks with his counterparts over the East Mediterranean Gas Forum, the petroleum ministry said.

According to the statement issued by the ministry, El-Molla met and held talks with Mohamed Mustafa, the adviser to the Palestinian President for economic affairs in Ramallah, and Yuval Steinitz, the Israeli minister of energy, in Jerusalem to support the goals and efforts of the Eastern Mediterranean Gas Forum.

The Eastern Mediterranean Gas Forum’s founding countries include Palestine, Israel, Egypt, Cyprus, Greece, Jordan, and Italy.

“The visits aims to crystalise a common vision and a systematic dialogue to develop a regional market, as the forum’s charter [comes into effect] in a way that supports the member states’ efforts to invest their gas reserves and use the existing and future infrastructure through fruitful and constructive cooperation,” the statement read.