Sisi to meet Erdogan in Ankara as Egypt and Turkey look to reconcile ties

After a decade, the leaders said they turned over a 'new leaf' during Turkish president’s visit to Cairo in February

ISTANBUL:

Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi will meet his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara on Wednesday, the Turkish presidency said, as the two seal their reconciliation.

After a decade of frosty relations, the two leaders said they had turned over a “new leaf” in their ties during Erdogan’s visit to Cairo in February.

Wednesday’s visit comes in response to that diplomatic meeting, during which they pledged greater cooperation in the Middle East and bolstered trade, the Turkish presidency said on Tuesday.

In 2013, Ankara and Cairo cut ties after Sisi, then defence minister, ousted president Mohamed Morsi, an ally of Turkiye and part of the Muslim Brotherhood movement.

Erdogan said at the time he would never speak to “anyone” like Sisi, who in 2014 became president of the Arab world’s most populous nation.

But relations between the two men have warmed over the past two years, with their interests aligning on several issues, including the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

Despite the decade of estrangement, trade between the two countries never ceased: Turkiye is Egypt’s fifth-largest trading partner, while Egypt is Turkiye’s largest in Africa.