Turkey and Egypt agree to increase trade by 50 percent

Turkey and Egypt have agreed to increase their trade by 50 percent over the next five years in a bid to solidify an ongoing rapprochement effort.

The agreement, announced Tuesday, came following a meeting between Egypt's Trade and Industry Minister Amhed Samir Saleh and his Turkish counterpart Omer Bolat in Ankara.

The Egyptian Trade and Industry Ministry tweeted that in the first meeting between the two sides in 10 years, the two had agreed "on a roadmap to strengthen bilateral economic relations."

A joint statement shared by the two ministers said they would increase the mutual trade volume from its current level of $10 billion to $15 billion.

The two ministers also agreed to advance a free trade agreement that was signed between the two countries in 2005 and hold a follow up meeting from 2012's High Level Commercial Consultation Mechanism meeting.

The progress of both initiatives were halted following a diplomatic rift that occurred after President Mohammed Morsi was ousted in 2013, with Turkish President Erdogan vocally speaking out against the Rabaa Square massacre and calling Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi a tyrant.

The rift has since thawed, with Egypt and Turkey formally appointing ambassadors to each other’s capitals in late July following a May announcement.