The Egyptian and Spanish defence ministers yesterday signed a defence cooperation agreement that covers joint military exercises and technical expertise in their first ever such agreement.
The agreement was signed in Cairo by Spanish defence minister Pedro Morenes and his counterpart Sedky Shobi. Morenes, the first Spanish defence minister to visit Egypt in a quarter of a century, was on his way to visit Spanish units stationed in Djibouti, who are engaged in anti-piracy operations as part of Operation Atalanta.
The agreement will see the establishment of a committee that will meet every two years to monitor developments, and lays the foundation for cooperation in science and technology, defence, education, training, health care and military regulations.
The agreement had been pending since 2003. Last week Egyptian president Mohamed Al Sisi visited Spain where a security cooperation agreement was signed.
