Egypt, Qatar sign deals to boost cooperation

CAIRO: Egypt and Qatar signed three memoranda of understanding (MoUs) in Doha, the Egyptian presidency said in a statement.

Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and visiting Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi witnessed the signing of the MoU between the Sovereign Fund of Egypt for investment and development and the Qatar Investment Authority, the statement added on Wednesday.

Another deal was signed in the field of social affairs between the Egyptian Ministry of Social Solidarity and the Qatari Ministry of Social Development, Xinhua news agency reported.

The third MoU was signed for cooperation in the field of ports between the two countries, it said.

"The visit culminates the recent trajectory of excellence in Egyptian-Qatari relations," said Egypt's Presidency Spokesperson Bassam Rady.

The two leaders discussed ways to foster closer cooperation between Egypt and Qatar and to increase their joint trade, economic, and investment relations, the statement added.

Their meeting also tackled developments in Arab regional and international issues of mutual interest, it said.

Sisi's two-day visit to Qatar is the first-of-its-kind in four years.

The Qatari emir visited Cairo in June. In late March, Cairo and Doha agreed to invest $5 billion in Egypt.

In January 2021, the Arab quartet of Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain signed the Al-Ula Declaration with Qatar, ending their all-around boycott of Doha since mid-2017.