ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani met with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi on Sunday in the capital Cairo, stressing the importance of expanding economic ties between the two sides.

Barzani arrived in Egypt’s Cairo on an official visit on Saturday evening and was received by Minister of Culture Ahmed Fouad Hanno. He is scheduled to hold high-level meetings with the country’s top officials to discuss bilateral ties.

The Egyptian president welcomed the Kurdish premier to the country and expressed Cairo’s willingness to boost bilateral relations, especially in investment and trade, according to a statement from Barzani’s office.

“The Prime Minister lauded Egypt and President Sisi’s role consolidating peace and stability in the region,” the statement noted, adding that the two leaders “agreed to promote coordination and cooperation to maintain security and stability in the Kurdistan Region, Iraq and the region.”

The Egyptian president emphasized Cairo’s “keenness to deepen economic cooperation in all its forms between the two sides,” according to a statement from the Egyptian Presidency on the meeting with Barzani.

Sisi highlighted the abilities of Egyptian companies “particularly in the fields of energy and infrastructure,” and invited the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) “to benefit from these companies’ capabilities in implementing projects with high quality and competitive costs.”

For his part, the Kurdish premier welcomed the role of Egyptian companies in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region, stating that Erbil seeks to enhance cooperation with Cairo “and benefit from Egyptian expertise across a number of priority sectors” for the KRG.

The two sides also discussed regional issues of mutual interest and their visions for restoring security in the region, the statement added.

Egypt was the first Arab country to open a consulate in the Kurdistan Region in 2010. The two sides have a long-standing economic and cultural relationship, with trade volume between Erbil and Cairo standing at around $150 million annually.

Culturally, dozens of Egyptian publishing houses partake in the Erbil International Book Fair annually, while the first Kurdish newspaper called “Kurdistan” was published in Cairo in 1898.

In September, the Egyptian consulate organized an economic and investment forum between the Kurdistan Region and Egypt in Erbil, which discussed ways to strengthen economic connections.

Updated with PM Barzani's statement at 01:00 pm.