Egypt announced the success of the fourth round of the free trade agreement negotiations with the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) that concluded in Moscow on Thursday, according to Minister of Trade and Industry Nevine Gamea.

Gamea said that Egypt is expected to host the fifth round of the negotiations in November.

Gamea made her statements during the extended discussions held on Thursday, which gathered Minister Gamea with the EAEU’s Trade Minister, Andrey Slepnev.

The EAEU is an international integrational economic association which includes Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Armenia, and Kyrgyzstan.

Gamea said that Egypt is willing to accelerate the pace of these negotiations soon, adding that the free trade agreement with the EAEU is expected to enhance and advance economic, commercial, and venture relations between Egypt and the union’s members.

She also added that the agreement is expected to boost regional and intra-trade between Egypt and both central and north Asia and Europe through the union’s countries, on one side, while backing the EAEU’s trade flow into Arab and African markets across Egypt.

The negotiations launched in 2016 with the objective of establishing a free trade zone with the signed countries, including Egypt.

On 11 June, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that tens of countries in Africa, Latin America, and Asia are interested in the establishment of a Free Trade Area with the EAEU.

Trade exchange between Egypt and the EAEU recorded $4.6 billion in 2020.

In November 2018, Egypt inked a framework document with the EAEU for negotiations on the free trade agreement between the two sides.