Egyptian president Abdel Fattah El Sisi to be chief guest at Republic Day celebrations
1 min read . Updated: 21 Jan 2023, 01:24 PM IST
PremiumPresident el-Sisi is scheduled to visit India from 24 January to 26 January, during which he will hold wide-ranging talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, attend the Republic Day celebrations and interact with the business community
New Delhi: Egypt President Abdel Fattah El Sisi will be the chief guest at Republic Day celebrations, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Saturday.
“This is for the first time that the president of Egypt has been invited as chief guest on our Republic Day 2023," the ministry said. A 180-member strong military contingent from Egyptian army will also participate in the Republic Day parade.
President el-Sisi is scheduled to visit India from 24 January to 26 January, during which he will hold wide-ranging talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, attend the Republic Day celebrations and interact with the business community. He will be accompanied by a high-level delegation that will include five ministers and senior officials.
The Egyptian president previously visited India in October 2015 to participate in the third India-Africa Forum Summit, which was followed by a state visit in September 2016.
President el-Sisi will be accorded a ceremonial welcome at the Rashtrapati Bhavan on 25 January and Indian President Droupadi Murmu will host a state banquet in his honour the same evening.
“President Sisi will have a bilateral meeting and delegation-level talks with the Prime Minister on bilateral, regional and global issues of mutual interest," the MEA said in a statement.
External affairs minister S Jaishankar will also call on President el-Sisi.
“India and Egypt enjoy warm and friendly relations marked by civilizational, cultural and economic linkages and deep-rooted people-to-people ties. The multifaceted relationship is based on shared cultural values, commitment to foster economic growth, collaboration in the fields of defence & security and convergence on regional and global issues. The two countries work closely at multilateral and international platforms," the ministry said.
The trade between India and Egypt hit a record high of $7.26 billion in 2021-22, according to the MEA. “The trade was fairly balanced, with $3.74 billion Indian exports to Egypt and $3.52 billion imports from Egypt to India."
More than 50 Indian companies have invested around $3.15 billion in diverse sectors of the Egyptian economy, including chemicals, energy, textile, garment, agri-business and retail.
“The forthcoming visit of President el-Sisi is expected to further strengthen and deepen the time-tested partnership between India and Egypt," the MEA said.
