Egypt’s el-Sisi and Qatar’s emir hold talks during Cairo visit

Talks between the 2 leaders centered on ties between Qatar and Egypt, in addition to regional and international subjects.

Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi assessment an honour guard on the presidential palace in Cairo, Egypt on Saturday [QNA via AP]

President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of Egypt has held talks with Qatar’s emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, who's visiting Cairo for the primary time in years.

The talks on Saturday centered on ties between the 2 nations and a set of different regional and international subjects, in keeping with a quick assertion from the Egyptian presidency.

Al Thani arrived on the Itihadiya presidential palace in Cairo for talks with el-Sisi. Each leaders inspected an honour guard and bands performed the nationwide anthems of Egypt and Qatar, a livestream of the welcoming ceremony posted by the Egyptian presidency confirmed.

Egypt’s state-run al-Ahram every day reported the talks geared toward guaranteeing the “full normalisation” of ties between the 2 nations after resuming their relations early in 2021.

Throughout the go to, an Egyptian-Qatari enterprise council will meet with the goal of bettering commerce and investments between the international locations.

Qatar introduced in March an funding of $5bn in Egypt’s financial system, which was hit badly by the repercussions of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Arriving in Cairo late on Friday, Sheikh Tamim was acquired by el-Sisi on the airport the place they greeted one another with a handshake and cheek kisses on the tarmac.

Qatar’s emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, meets Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Cairo [Amiri Diwan via Reuters]

The go to, unthinkable just some years in the past, and the nice and cozy welcome on the airport confirmed the speedy enchancment of ties between the 2 nations for the reason that finish of a boycott of Doha by 4 Arab states, together with Egypt.

The go to additionally comes forward of US President Joe Biden’s anticipated journey to the Center East subsequent month. Each el-Sisi and Sheikh Tamim will attend a Saudi Arabia-hosted summit with the US president. The summit will embrace the leaders of the Gulf Cooperation Council, Iraq and Egypt.

Egypt’s ties with Qatar deteriorated in 2013 when el-Sisi, as defence minister, led the navy’s overthrow of the democratically elected President Mohamed Morsi after his short-lived rule. Morsi was backed by Qatar.

In 2017, Egypt joined Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain in a boycott of Qatar in an effort to drive Doha to alter its insurance policies. The rift lastly resulted in 2021, when Qatar signed a declaration with the 4 to normalise relations. Since then, ties have improved, and prime officers have exchanged visits.

The Egyptian president has since met Sheikh Tamim twice.