Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Cairo on Wednesday, sealing a series of new partnership agreements and displaying a united front against regional crises in Iran, Sudan and Gaza.
On Wednesday, ministers from both countries signed 18 additional agreements covering defense, tourism, health, and agriculture. At a joint press conference, Sisi stated that they agreed on the need to implement all phases of the ceasefire agreement in Gaza, expedite the delivery of humanitarian aid, and continue to focus on "a two-state solution, with the establishment of a Palestinian state."
Egypt and Turkey now form half of the mediation bloc for the current truce in Gaza, support the Sudanese army in its war against paramilitary forces, and share increasingly convergent positions throughout the region. Regarding Sudan, Sisi stated on Wednesday that both sides wanted to see a "humanitarian truce leading to a ceasefire and a comprehensive political path."
Sisi also called for efforts to avoid escalation in the region, advance diplomatic solutions, and "avoid the specter of war, whether regarding the Iranian nuclear issue or the region in general ." Erdogan echoed the need for diplomacy, stating that foreign interference poses "significant risks for the entire region" and that dialogue remains "the most appropriate method" for resolving disputes with Iran.
The two leaders also emphasized their support for Somalia's territorial integrity amid heightened regional tensions. Both countries backed the Somali government and condemned Israel's recognition of the breakaway region of Somaliland, in what analysts describe as an emerging regional security axis that includes Saudi Arabia.
Turkey supplied Egypt with sophisticated drones in 2024, and the two countries plan to manufacture them jointly. Erdogan arrived in Cairo after a stopover in Riyadh, his trip coinciding with talks between the United States and Iran that were initially scheduled to take place in Turkey before Tehran requested they be moved to Oman.
Relations between Cairo and Ankara have warmed considerably after nearly a decade of chill following Sisi's ouster of Muslim Brotherhood-aligned President Mohamed Morsi in 2013. Erdogan had vowed never to speak to Sisi, but since 2023 the two leaders have met several times, exchanged visits, normalized relations and signed more than a dozen cooperation agreements, including in the field of defense.
