Egypt, Israel hold talks to boost cooperation

By Abdelraouf Arna'out

JERUSALEM (AA) - An Israeli delegation headed by Intelligence Minister Eli Cohen met with Egyptian officials to discuss bilateral economic and security cooperation.

"Intelligence minister Cohen led a senior business delegation to Egypt, the largest of its kind in 20 years," Ofir Gendelman, spokesman of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, said on Twitter on Wednesday.

Gendelman said they are aiming "to expand trade and cooperation in agriculture, water, electricity and tourism."

He expressed hope that the bilateral trade volume between Israel and Egypt will reach $1 billion by 2020.

The Israeli intelligence minister also said he met with Egypt’s top security officials in the resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh to enhance security and economic cooperation.

“This is a historic visit that was made possible due to talks we secretly led between our governments for two years, and now business owners have entered the conversation,” the Israeli daily Jerusalem Post quoted Cohen as saying.

Egypt was the first Arab country to recognize Israel following the signing of their peace treaty in 1979.

*Ahmed Asmar contributed to this report from Ankara