The presidents of Egypt and Turkey, Abdelfatá al Sisi and Recep Tayyip Erdogan, respectively, have agreed to «initiate the development of bilateral relations» following their greeting in Doha on the occasion of the start of the World Cup, which marked their first meeting after years of tensions.
«The meeting will mark the beginning of the development of bilateral relations,» said a spokesman for the Egyptian Presidency, which said the two leaders «underlined the depth of historical ties between the two countries and peoples,» according to a brief statement on its website.
The greeting between Al Sisi and Erdogan came nearly a year after the start of consultations between their foreign ministries to try to reduce tensions, amid a rapprochement attempt by Ankara with Egypt, Israel, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia.
Bilateral relations were severely damaged following the 2013 Al Sisi-led coup that ousted Islamist Mohamed Mursi, who a year earlier had become the first elected president in the African country’s history after Hosni Mubarak was ousted from power in 2011 amid the ‘Arab Spring’.
Tension between the two countries has also increased in recent years over territorial disputes in the eastern Mediterranean, where Turkey is Libya’s ally in its claims over territorial waters with potential hydrocarbon resources, while Egypt is more aligned with Greece.
