Iran’s foreign minister went to Egypt on Sunday for high-level talks. It is one of several recent outreaches to Egypt by Iran. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met with top Egyptian officials, including President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Iranian state media said. This is important.
Egypt borders Gaza and historically has played an important role in Gaza. However, Egypt didn’t seem to warn about the October 7 attack, and Cairo has been impacted by this war. Pressure has built on Egypt over the last two years of the ongoing war. Iran likely wants to discuss this and other issues with Egypt.
Egypt has peace with Israel. However, any Iranian involvement in Egypt will be of concern to Israel. This comes as Iran appears to be heading toward the development of a possible nuclear weapon and as Iran is in talks with the US about that program. The US is also trying to get a Gaza ceasefire.
“Araghchi met al-Sisi at his presidential palace on Monday morning, where they exchanged views on issues of mutual interest. Hours later, the top diplomat met and held talks with his Egyptian counterpart, Badr Abdelatty,” Iranian state media IRNA said.
Discussions on bilateral relations
Bilateral relations are on the agenda, and there are other issues to discuss. “This is Araghchi’s third trip to Egypt since taking office in 2024. He also accompanied President Masoud Pezeshkian during the D-8 summit held in Egypt in December last year. Iran and Egypt are eyeing on a new chapter in their bilateral relations, building on strenuous efforts made over the past two years,” the IRNA report said.
“Pezeshkian’s primary agenda of his visit to Egypt, the first by an Iranian president since 2013, was aimed at fostering economic cooperation within Islamic nations, especially Egypt. Referring to the ongoing visit of Araghchi, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei said that Iran and Egypt have held high-level meetings and consultations over the past one-and-a-half years, with both sides showing determination to strengthen relations.”