Egyptian PM receives Modi at Cairo in a show of growing ties

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi was received by Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly at Cairo airport on Saturday for his first state visit to Egypt.

The two-day visit at the invitation of President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi is the first bilateral visit by an Indian prime minister to Egypt since 1997.

On Sunday, Modi will meet El-Sisi and the two leaders will sign a strategic partnership agreement.


Modi will also visit the 11th century Al-Hakim Mosque, restored with the help of the Dawoodi Bohra community. He will then go to the Heliopolis War Cemetery to pay tribute to the Indian soldiers who made the supreme sacrifice for Egypt during World War I. This is a memorial that has been erected by the Commonwealth for 3,799 Indian soldiers who laid down their lives in various battles in Egypt during World War I.

The decision to upgrade ties was announced during El-Sisi's visit to India in January for the Republic Day parade.

In January, India and Egypt, a key player in the Arab world, had agreed on a strategic partnership, covering political, security, defence, energy and economic aspects.

Defence partnership, which lost momentum during the post-Nasser period, picked up pace during the past two years with joint exercises, port calls and visits by defence leadership.

Indian investments in the Suez Canal Economic Zone, with Egypt seeking Indian investments to boost the local economy, are also on the cards during the Modi's trip. A pact on agriculture sector cooperation to share best practices could also be announced, said the people cited above.