Egypt has invited Italian authorities to send representative to be present during the retrieval of CCTV footage that could help reveal the circumstances surrounding the murder of Italian student Giulio Regeni in Cairo in 2016.

According to a joint statement, Egyptian prosecutor-general Nabil Sadek and Italian counterpart Giuseppe Pignatone discussed in a phone call on Sunday the latest developments in the investigation into Regeni’s murder.

Sadek invited Pignatone to send representatives from the Italian prosecution to be present while Egyptian authorities retrieve CCTV footage from Cairo metro security cameras that show Regeni shortly before his disappearance.

The retrieval process will start on 15 May with the assistance of a foreign expert.

Regeni had been in Cairo for several weeks conducting research on independent trade unions when he went missing in January 2016. His body was found on 3 February 2016 on a roadside on the outskirts of Cairo bearing signs of torture.

Pignatone has accepted the invitation and will be sending a delegation comprising his deputy Sergio Colaiocco and a number of Italian technical experts.

"[Sadek and Pignatone] have great expectations regarding the [retrieval] process, which should help uncover the truth behind the incident and reveal its perpetrators," the statement said, adding that Rome will receive a copy of the footage recovered at the end of the retrieval process.

Egypt's prosecutor-general informed his counterpart of measures being carried out by the Egyptian prosecution since a December 2017 meeting where the Italian prosecution provided Egypt with a report prepared by the Italian judicial police based on documents on the case submitted by Egypt to Italy.

"Both sides reiterated their commitment to joint judicial cooperation," the statement said.

Egypt has been working closely with Italy to help uncover the mystery behind the Italian student's murder, whose death led to a diplomatic row between the two countries, with Italy withdrawing its ambassador in April 2016.

The European country returned its envoy in 2017, describing the two countries as “inextricable partners.”

Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi has pledged that he will bring the culprits behind Regeni’s murder to justice.