Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi shaking hands with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Doha, Qatar, in the presence of Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad before the inauguration ceremony of Qatar 2022 World Cup, 20 November. Egyptian Presidency
The two countries announced the appointment of Amr Elhamamy as the Egyptian ambassador to Ankara and of Salih Mutlu Sen as the Turkish ambassador to Cairo.
"This step aims to establish normal relations and highlights the mutual determination to enhance bilateral relations for the benefit of both nations," the statement indicated, adding that the decision to upgrade diplomatic ties reflects the commitment of the two presidents.
After Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's re-election in May, he and President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi agreed to "upgrade diplomatic relations and exchange ambassadors" in a phone call, according to a statement by the Egyptian Presidency.
Both presidents affirmed the historical ties binding their countries and agreed to strengthen relations and promote cooperation, including on economic and regional issues such as Palestine, Libya, and Syria.
In the past year, Cairo and Ankara held ministerial-level talks to normalize relations after severing diplomatic ties in 2013.
In mid-June, Egyptian Foreign Affairs Minister Sameh Shoukry and his newly-appointed Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan agreed to continue normalizing relations between the two countries.
The move follows discussions earlier this year between Shoukry and former Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu in Cairo, during which they established a specific timeframe for improving diplomatic ties.
Two hundred Turkish companies are currently investing EGP 2 billion ($64 million) and operating in Egypt, according to Atilla Yenigun, the Commercial Counselor of the Turkish embassy in Cairo.
Bilateral trade volume between Egypt and Turkey rose by 14 percent to $7.7 billion in 2022, up from $6.7 billion the previous year, according to data released by the Central Agency for Public Mobilisation and Statistics (CAPMAS) in March.
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