Egypt

Greek Foreign Minister Dendias met with his Egyptian counterpart in Cairo

Turkey and Egypt could negotiate a maritime demarcation agreement in the eastern Mediterranean if the course of the ties paves the way for such a move, Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said on March 3 while welcoming Cairo's exploration bids that had respected Turkey's continental shelf.

Egypt said on Wednesday that the United Arab Emirates has joined the Cairo-based Eastern Mediterranean Gas Forum as an observer.

Egypt, Israel, Greece, Cyprus, Italy and Jordan established the EastMed Gas Forum (EMGF) as an intergovernmental organization in a virtual ceremony hosted by Cairo in September.

The Palestinian Authority is also part of the forum.

Defense Minister Nikos Panagiotopoulos is paying an official visit to Egypt from Thursday to Saturday.

In Cairo, Panagiotopoulos WILL meet with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and then with his Egyptian counterpart, General Mohamed Zaki.

Cyprus and Greece will join Egypt, France and the United Arab Emirates in conducting a joint sea-air exercise in Alexandria, Egypt starting Monday.

The joint exercise will last until December 6, Cyprus' Ministry of Defense tweeted Saturday:

The Egyptian presidency said on Thursday the maritime deal signed earlier this month between Athens and Cairo is "a turning point in the bilateral relations between the two countries."

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis spoke with French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday, to discuss developments in the East Mediterranean and Turkish aggression, as part of the government's diplomatic efforts.

Later, he also spoke with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. 

Turkey has slammed a joint statement made by the foreign ministers of France, Egypt, Greek Cyprus, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates concerning its stance on Libya and the eastern Mediterranean Sea and accused them of seeking "regional chaos and instability."

A special flight to repatriate Greek citizens from Egypt will take place on Friday, April 24.

The Air Cairo flight will take off from Cairo with Greek citizens from Cairo, Alexandria and other parts of Egypt who have submitted requests to Greece's general consulates in the two major Egyptian cities.
 

Oil and gas companies are cutting spending plans in response to the new coronavirus and a push by Saudi Arabia and Russia to ramp up output.