Egypt expects to bring military cooperation with Russia to a new level + Egypt Pakistan business council?
Defence minister in Moscow for talks: An Egyptian military delegation led by Defence Minister Mohamed Zaki held talks with Russian defence officials in Moscow yesterday during which the two sides pledged to strengthen military ties.
Renewed tensions in the Gaza strip could soon ease courtesy of Egypt’s pressure on Hamas: Talks between Egypt and Hamas have resulted in the latter agreeing to stop launching incendiary balloons from Gaza into Israel, who had launched yesterday airstrikes against Gaza in response, writes the Jerusalem Post, citing a report by Israeli broadcaster Kan. The latest escalation of tensions follows weekend border clashes in which dozens were injured, pushingEgypt to indefinitely close its Rafah border crossing with Gaza for security reasons, in a move that an unnamed Egyptian official said was meant to apply pressure to Hamas over a lack of progress in indirect talks with Israel.
Egypt, Pakistan are mulling establishing a joint business council: Egyptian ambassador to Pakistan Tarek Dahroug and Pakistan's federal finance minister Shaukat Tarin agreed in a phone call yesterday to study the prospect of setting up a Pakistan-Egypt Business Council, as part of plans to increase cooperation between the two countries, according to a press release. They also discussed ways to improve trade ties, with initial focus on rice and cotton.