Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has left for Egypt on a two-day visit on the invitation of his Egyptian counterpart to enhance economic diplomacy.
In a video message before departure on Tuesday, the foreign minister said that there are vast opportunities of economic cooperation between the two countries.
“The [Egyptian] foreign minister has invited me and on that invitation I am going to Egypt so we can re-engage with this important country,” the foreign minister said. “It is our administration’s policy to strengthen our relations with the African continent since we believe we have not fully explored its markets yet. It is extremely important for our economic diplomacy to engage with markets in Africa.”
“There are plenty of opportunities for both countries,” Qureshi added. “We can get into defence cooperation with each other. Pakistan can also expand its economic base by constructively engaging with Egypt.”
He said he will hold talks with his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Hassan Shoukry on the entire spectrum of bilateral relations. Qureshi noted that Egypt is an important country of Muslim Ummah and is called the gateway to Africa. He said promoting trade relations with Africa is a priority of the government.
The foreign minister said during his stay to Egypt, he also intends to visit Jamia Al Azhar, adding, “We desire to take advantage from their experiences in the field of education.” He said that he will also meet the business community in Egypt.
Qureshi’s visit comes less than two weeks after Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan reaffirmed Islamabad’s commitment to expand Pakistan-Egypt ties, particularly in the areas of trade, education and culture, in a meeting with the ambassador of Egypt to Pakistan, Tarek Dahroug.
