Rajnath Singh to visit Egypt on September 19

During the visit, he will hold bilateral talks with Minister of Defence and Defence Production, General Mohamed Zaki, read the Defence Ministry press release.

The two Ministers will review the bilateral defence ties, explore new initiatives to intensify military-to-military engagements and focus on deepening cooperation

An MoU to provide further impetus to enhanced defence cooperation between India and Egypt will also be signed, added the release.

The defence minister will also call on the President of Egypt, Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi.

Earlier in July, India and Egypt targeted to increase annual bilateral trade to USD 12 billion in the next five years from USD 7.26 billion.

Senior officials of the two countries agreed to boost bilateral trade during the meeting held in Cairo from 25-26 July 2022.

Egypt is one of the largest investment destinations for India in the region with an existing Indian investment of USD 3.15 billion. Indian companies continue to execute several projects in Egypt.

Moreover, to bolster defence cooperation between the two countries, a team of the Indian Air Force arrived in Egypt on June 22 to participate in a bilateral 'Tactical Leadership Programme' with the Egyptian Air Force.

Earlier in November, last year, Chief of Air Staff Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari went to Egypt for his five-day visit to attend the Air Power Symposium and Defence Exposition (EDEX) in Cairo.

This event was scheduled from November 28 to December 2.

The year 2022 is of particular significance since it marks the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations between India and Egypt.

Egypt and India also enjoy cordial defence relations. There was close cooperation between the Air Forces, with efforts at jointly developing a fighter aircraft in the 1960s. IAF pilots had also trained Egyptian pilots from the 1960s until 1984. In the recent past, since 2015, there have been several high-level exchanges of visits by defence delegations. (ANI)