In a bid to deepen ties and strengthen economic bonds, India and Egypt today signed seven key pacts including one on cyber security after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi held bilateral talks here.
The two leaders also agreed to enhance cooperation in Defence and in international forums like UN.
“President Morsi and I have just concluded extensive and very productive discussions... We agreed that his visit, at an important juncture for Egypt, offers us a great opportunity to renew our relationship and take it to a different level of engagement and cooperation,” Prime Minister Singh said after concluding talks with Morsi here.
Expressing admiration for the courage and sacrifices of the people of Egypt in ushering in a new era of democracy, Singh said India has offered to share its experience as Morsi “ably leads his nation in building strong institutions and frameworks for democracy, social justice and inclusive economic development“.
“I am convinced that Egypt’s successful transition would be an important model for the region and the world,” he said.
On his part, Morsi called Singh a “noble brother” and said his visit shows that Egypt is keen to cooperate with India.
Morsi came to power after Egypt’s first democratic elections last year that were held after the 30-year-old iron-clasp rule of former strongman Hosni Mubarak came to an end in February 2011, following a series of anti-regime protests, known as Arab Spring.
Underlining that India and Egypt have enormous potential for deepening cooperation across the full spectrum of ties, Singh said economic partnership has “rich possibilities“.
“We agreed that information technology, services, electronics, small and medium enterprises, manufacturing, fertilisers, and renewable energy constitute important areas of cooperation.
Egypt’s location, as a bridge between Asia and Africa, astrides a major global trade route and together with its skilled human resources makes it an attractive business destination for India, he said.