PM Modi's first state visit to Egypt set to provide further impetus to bilateral strategic ties: Key points

NEW DELHI: After concluding his highly successful four-day State visit to the US, PM Modi on Saturday landed in Egypt for a two-day tour in a bid to boost bilateral strategic ties. This is his first visit to the country and the first bilateral visit by an Indian Prime Minister since 1997.

In a special honour, Egyptian PM Mostafa Madbouly received PM Modi at the airport. The PM was also given a Guard of Honour on his arrival.

See Also: PM Modi Egypt visit live updates

PM Modi will hold bilateral talks with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi on Sunday, and also has various engagements with local leaders and the Indian diaspora.

He will also visit the Al-Hakim Mosque, and the Heliopolis War Grave cemetery to pay tribute to the Indian soldiers who made the supreme sacrifice fighting for Egypt during World War-I.

PM Modi is visiting Egypt at Sisi's invitation, who was the chief guest at India's Republic Day celebrations this year.

The visit is of significance as Egypt has traditionally been one of India's most important trading partners in the African continent. India-Egypt Bilateral Trade Agreement has been in operation since March 1978 and is based on the Most Favored Nation clause.

Key developments through the day:

Rapidly evolving partnership: PM ModiPM Modi will hold bilateral talks with El-Sisi on Sunday to discuss ways to give further impetus to the strategic partnership between the two major nations.

"I am excited to pay a state visit to a close and friendly country for the first time," PM Modi had said in his departure statement.

"We had the pleasure of receiving President Sisi as the Chief Guest at our Republic Day celebrations this year," he noted.

These two visits in the span of a few months are "a reflection of our rapidly evolving partnership" with Egypt, which was elevated to a 'Strategic Partnership' during President Sisi's visit, Modi said.

"I look forward to my discussions with President Sisi and senior members of the Egyptian Government to impart further momentum to our civilisational and multi-faceted partnership," he said.

Round table with Egyptian PM
Indian Ambassador to Egypt Ajit Gupte said that for the first time, a round table meeting was held between PM Modi and the Egyptian Prime Minister.

"India and Egypt are two of the greatest ancient civilizations in the world and our ties go back more than 4000 years. We've had maritime contacts over the centuries and in recent years, the relationship has gone from strength to strength. Particularly, after Egypt's President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and Prime Minister Modi both came to power in 2014," the Indian Ambassador to Egypt added.

A 9-year wait for Indian diaspora

The Indian community in Egypt is ecstatic and upbeat about PM Modi's first visit to the country. The community members said they have been waiting for PM Modi for the last nine years.

Deepti Singh, president of the Indian community in Egypt, said: "It is going to be great to have PM Modi here, and we are very excited to welcome him. The Indian community in Egypt has been waiting for him to visit Egypt ever since he became the PM. Everyone is preparing for this visit."

"People of Egypt like India because of civilizational ties and Bollywood. We are proud of the work done by PM Modi, starting from infrastructure to Covid-19 vaccine. Our image in Egypt has gotten better due to PM Modi. We now feel proud and honoured when people tell us that you are coming from the biggest economy," she said.

"Well, the Indian community in Egypt is quite small. It is about 3,600 and there are also students. But they are very eager to welcome the Prime Minister especially as this is the prime minister's first visit to Egypt. So we are organising a community event where the prime minister will get to meet them," Indian Ambassador to Egypt Ajit Gupte added.

Visit to Al-Hakim Mosque
The PM will visit the Al-Hakim Mosque -- a historic and prominent mosque in Cairo named after Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah (985-1021), the 16th Fatimid caliph -- that has been restored with the help of the Dawoodi Bohra community.

The mosque of al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah is an important cultural site for the Bohra community in Cairo. The Bohra community in India actually originated from the Fatima dynasty and they have renovated the mosque from the 1970s onwards.

PM Modi's visit will be significant in terms of extending his long-standing warm relationship with the Dawoodi Bohra community in India and elsewhere.

Heliopolis War Grave cemetery
He will also visit Heliopolis War Grave cemetery to pay tribute to the Indian soldiers who made the supreme sacrifice fighting for Egypt during World War I.

The memorial was erected by the Commonwealth. Around 3,799 Indian soldiers laid down their lives in various battles in Egypt during WW-I. They were essentially defending Egypt from attacks from the Ottoman forces, said Indian Ambassador to Egypt Ajit Gupte.

Important trading partner
India was Egypt's fifth largest trading partner in the period April 2022-Dec 2022. It was the 11th-largest importer of Egyptian goods and the 5th-largest exporter to Egypt during the same time.

The latest bilateral trade between both countries reached $5.175 billion on (April 22-Jan 23) with $3.473 billion in Indian exports and $1.702 billion in Indian imports.

Over 450 Indian companies are registered in Egypt, of which around 50 are active in various sectors with a combined investment exceeding $3.15 billion. Approximately half of them, are joint ventures or wholly owned Indian subsidiaries while the rest operate through their representative offices.

The investments by Egyptian companies in India are about $37 million.
Close political understanding
India and Egypt share close political understanding based on a long history of contact and cooperation in bilateral, regional and global issues. The joint announcement of the establishment of diplomatic relations at the Ambassadorial level was made on August 18 1947.

Since the 1980s, there have been four Prime Ministerial visits from India to Egypt.

Rajiv Gandhi visited the country in 1985, PV Narasimha Rao in 1995, IK Gujral in 1997, and Manmohan Singh in 2009.

From the Egyptian side, President Hosni Mubarak visited India in 1982, in 1983 (NAM Summit), and again in 2008.

High-level exchanges with Egypt continued after the 2011 Egyptian Revolution and then President Mohamed Morsi visited India in March 2013. External Affairs Minister (EAM) visited Cairo in March 2012 and the Egyptian Foreign Minister visited India in December 2013.
(With inputs from agencies)

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