Dr. Badr Abdel-Aty, Minister of Foreign Affairs, International Cooperation and Egyptians Abroad, and Dr. Mohamed Farid Saleh, Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade, received Hagos Gebrhiwet, Economic Advisor to the Eritrean President, and Nasr al-Din Saleh, Eritrean Minister of Trade and Industry.

Minister Abdel-Aati, according to a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, affirmed pride in the deep-rooted strategic relations with Eritrea, and keenness to enhance bilateral cooperation in various fields, especially economic, investment, trade, industrial and developmental fields, in a way that supports Eritrean national efforts to advance the development process and contributes to achieving the aspirations of the two brotherly peoples.

Egyptian-Eritrean relations

The Foreign Minister also affirmed Egypt’s full support for the sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity of the State of Eritrea, stressing the importance of building on the outcomes of the high-level mutual visits, and continuing consultation and coordination between the two countries to enhance trade exchange and encourage joint investments, in addition to the readiness to provide all aspects of technical support and capacity building in priority sectors, including industry, trade and infrastructure, as well as supporting the participation of the Egyptian private sector in the Eritrean market, which enhances the path of economic development in Eritrea and supports the achievement of regional integration.

In the same context, the Foreign Minister stressed the importance of supporting Egyptian companies operating in the Eritrean market and enhancing opportunities for Egyptian exports, noting the effective role of Egyptian private sector companies in implementing projects that are a priority for the Eritrean side, which supports comprehensive development efforts and fulfills the aspirations of the two brotherly peoples.

Egypt and Eritrea

For his part, Dr. Mohamed Farid Saleh stressed the keenness to deepen the investment and trade partnership with Eritrea, in light of the promising opportunities provided by the Eritrean market, pointing to the importance of working to enhance communication between the business communities in the two countries, which contributes to advancing joint investments and increasing trade exchange rates, stressing the need to take advantage of continental frameworks, foremost among them the African Continental Free Trade Agreement, to enhance the access of Egyptian products to the Eritrean market and regional markets.

In a related context, the meeting included an exchange of views on several regional issues of mutual interest, most notably the developments in Sudan. Both sides agreed on the necessity of preserving Sudan's unity and territorial integrity, supporting its national institutions, and rejecting the establishment of any parallel entities. They also emphasized the importance of launching a purely Sudanese-owned political process to end the conflict. Furthermore, the two sides discussed security challenges in the Red Sea, affirming that the security and governance of the Red Sea remain the sole and exclusive responsibility of the littoral states, as they are the parties concerned with maintaining its security and stability.