Military rapprochement between Egypt and Turkey transcends disputes over maritime agreement in the Mediterranean
Military rapprochement between Egypt and Turkey continues, with announcements of joint projects in defense industries including missiles, ships, aircraft, and drones, despite ongoing disagreement over the Turkish-Libyan maritime memorandum of understanding that Cairo considers void. The Turkish ambassador expressed confidence in joint production within ten years, noting that trade exchange is approaching $9 billion.
Military rapprochement between Egypt and Turkey continues, with Ankara announcing that the two countries are moving toward implementing joint projects in defense industries, including the production of missiles, ships, aircraft, and drones, despite the ongoing dispute over the Turkish-Libyan maritime memorandum of understanding in the Mediterranean, which Cairo considers void. Turkish Ambassador to Cairo Salih Mutlu Şen, speaking at the Turkish embassy's celebration of the 103rd anniversary of the founding of the Turkish Republic, said that military relations between the two countries are witnessing progress and joint projects in the field of defense industries, expressing confidence that within the next ten years the two countries will be able to jointly produce missiles, ships, aircraft, and drones. Şen added that the volume of trade exchange between the two countries is expected to approach $9 billion during the current year, noting the opening of 50 new Turkish production facilities in Egypt since 2022, providing job opportunities for about 100,000 Egyptians. The rapprochement coincides with the announcement of the joint "Friendship Sea 2026" exercise between the Egyptian and Turkish naval forces in Alexandria next November, as part of the resumption of military drills between the two countries after a 13-year hiatus. Military cooperation between Cairo and Ankara has developed recently, including joint exercises and agreements in defense industries, most recently the signing of a letter of intent for joint defense cooperation last July. Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper quoted experts as saying that the growing military cooperation helps reduce tension between the two countries over contentious issues, foremost among them the Libyan file and the maritime agreement, affirming that common interests and political coordination allow for containing differences. This comes amid Egypt's rejection of the maritime memorandum of understanding between Turkey and Libya, which the Libyan House of Representatives recently ratified. Ankara had offered to reach an agreement on maritime border demarcation with Cairo that takes into account the common interests of the two countries.