On his maiden trip to Egypt, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will pay his homage to the Indian soldiers who lost their lives fighting for Egypt in the maiden World War by visiting the Al-Hakim mosque, which dates back to the 11th century, according to Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra on Monday.
The foreign secretary made these remarks during a special briefing on the prime minister’s upcoming trips to the US and Egypt. Prime Minister Modi will travel to Egypt for a state visit on June 24 and 25.
It is important to note that this will be the prime minister’s first trip to Egypt, and Kwatra added, “It will also be the Indian prime minister’s first official bilateral trip to Egypt since 1997.”
In between, there have been visits, but they have typically been for multilateral or plurilateral events, he continued.
Kwatra further stated that PM Modi will first meet with the India unit, a select group of senior ministers that the President of Egypt had formed after his return from India, when he arrives in Cairo on June 24.
“Most recently, the Egyptian president had paid a state visit to India when he graced our Republic Day earlier in the year as the chief guest. At this stage, the prime Minister is expected to reach Cairo in the afternoon of June 24 where where his first interaction will be with the India unit,” the Foreign Secretary said.
He added that Egypt and India have had strong political contacts at the cabinet level over the past few months following the visit of the president of Egypt.Minister of External Affairs himself, the Defence Minister and the Minister of Environment have travelled to Egypt. We have had, similarly at least three to four ministers from the Egyptian government who have visited India. Even as we speak a ministerial-level delegation led by the chairperson of the Suisse Canal Authority is in India clearly shows you the extent of very sharp focus that both India and Egypt are placing on strengthening all aspects of their relationship,” the Foreign Secretary added.
Kwatra went on to discuss PM Modi’s visit, saying that after speaking with the India unit, he would connect with the little Indian community in Egypt and perhaps run into some of the most significant individuals in the nation.
“His next day will begin with a visit to Al-Hakim mosque. It is the 11th-century mosque which was refurbished, and renovated by the Bohra community and the visit to Al-Hakim mosque will be followed by a visit to the Heliopolis War Grave cemetery to pay tribute to the Indian soldiers who made the supreme sacrifice fighting for Egypt during the First World War,” he added.
Following this, the Prime Minister will have a formal meeting with the Egyptian President, at which time they will hold bilateral talks and sign a number of memoranda of understanding and agreements, according to Kwatra.
Recalling the recent India visit of the Grand Mufti of Egypt, he said, “Egypt has also been invited as a special guest during India’s G20 presidency.”
Kwatra also noted that PM Modi’s visit is a ‘very quick, reciprocal visit’ which came just within six months of Egypt President Sisi’s visit to India.
“We do expect and are confident that the visit of PM Modi to Egypt will not just ensure continuing momentum to the relationship between our two countries, but will also help it expand to new areas of trade and economic engagement between our two countries,” Kwatra said.
Prior to his Egypt visit, PM Modi will reach the United States at the invitation of President Joe Biden.