Egypt, Turkey Prepare for 2nd Round of Talks on Normalization

Egyptian and Turkish officials at a meeting in Cairo in May. (Photo: Egyptian Foreign Ministry)
Egyptian and Turkish officials at a meeting in Cairo in May. (Photo: Egyptian Foreign Ministry)
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Egypt, Turkey Prepare for 2nd Round of Talks on Normalization

Egyptian and Turkish officials at a meeting in Cairo in May. (Photo: Egyptian Foreign Ministry)
Egyptian and Turkish officials at a meeting in Cairo in May. (Photo: Egyptian Foreign Ministry)

Four months after the first exploratory talks between Egypt and Turkey on the normalization of relations, the two countries are preparing for the next session, which will be hosted by Ankara as of Sept. 7.

The two sides will be represented by their respective deputy foreign ministers and will look into the means to normalize the “politically severed relations since nearly eight years.”

Both Cairo and Ankara reported that a second round of exploratory talks will be held over two days in the Turkish capital.

The Egyptian Foreign Ministry said that Ambassador Hamdi Loza, Deputy Foreign Minister, will visit Ankara “in response to the invitation” from Turkey, to hold the second round of “exploratory talks”, which are expected to “deal with bilateral relations between the two sides, as well as a number of regional issues.”

The upcoming round follows the first series of talks, which were held in Cairo on May 5-6, when the two sides announced, in a joint statement, that the discussions were frank and touched on bilateral issues, as well as the situation in Libya, Syria and Iraq, and the need to achieve peace and security in the eastern Mediterranean region.

Relations between Ankara and Cairo deteriorated in 2013 over the Turkish position on the fall of the Muslim Brotherhood rule in Egypt, and its support for the group that the Egyptian authorities have designated a terrorist organization.

While the two countries withdrew their ambassadors simultaneously, their embassies remained open and continued to work at the Chargé d’Affaires level over the past eight years.

However, in several statements last year, Ankara has expressed interests to revive the relations with Cairo and forced a number of Brotherhood-speaking channels, which broadcast from Istanbul, to stop their incitement and attack on the government in Egypt. Turkish authorities also banned Brotherhood leaders from delivering statements or carrying out activities that obstruct the rapprochement with Cairo.

Relations between Egypt and Turkey are intertwined, including the “Eastern Mediterranean Gas Forum” organization, and the demarcation of the maritime borders with Cyprus, Greece and Libya (within the framework of an agreement between Tripoli and Ankara that Cairo does not recognize).

Cairo is the permanent headquarters of the “Eastern Mediterranean Gas Forum,” which includes Greece, Cyprus, Italy, Jordan, Palestine, and Israel, while Turkey is involved in disputes with Greece and Cyprus over energy reserves in the Mediterranean.



Netanyahu Aide Faces Indictment over Gaza Leak

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, speaks to reporters before a meeting with lawmakers at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, July 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, speaks to reporters before a meeting with lawmakers at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, July 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
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Netanyahu Aide Faces Indictment over Gaza Leak

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, speaks to reporters before a meeting with lawmakers at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, July 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, speaks to reporters before a meeting with lawmakers at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, July 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

An aide to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces indictment on security charges pending a hearing, Israel's attorney general has said, for allegedly leaking top secret military information during Israel's war in Gaza.

Netanyahu's close adviser, Jonatan Urich, has denied any wrongdoing in the case, which legal authorities began investigating in late 2024.

Netanyahu has described probes against Urich and other aides as politically motivated and on Monday said that Urich had not harmed state security. Urich's attorneys said the charges were baseless and that their client's innocence would be proven beyond doubt, reported Reuters.

Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara said in a statement late on Sunday that Urich and another aide had extracted secret information from the Israeli military and leaked it to German newspaper Bild.

Their intent, she said, was to shape public opinion of Netanyahu and influence the discourse about the slaying of six Israeli hostages by their Palestinian captors in Gaza in late August 2024.

The hostages' deaths sparked mass protests in Israel and outraged hostages' families, who accused Netanyahu of torpedoing ceasefire talks that had faltered in the preceding weeks for political reasons.

Netanyahu vehemently denies this. He has repeatedly said that Hamas was to blame for the talks collapsing, while the group has said it was Israel's fault no deal had been reached.

Four of the six slain hostages had been on the list of more than 30 captives that Hamas was set to free if a ceasefire had been reached, according to a defense official at the time.

The Bild article in question was published days after the hostages were found executed in a Hamas tunnel in southern Gaza. It outlined Hamas' negotiation strategy in the indirect ceasefire talks and largely corresponded with Netanyahu's allegations against the militant group over the deadlock.

Bild said after the investigation was announced that it does not comment on its sources and that its article relied on authentic documents. The newspaper did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Monday.

A two-month ceasefire was reached in January this year and included the release of 38 hostages before Israel resumed attacks in Gaza. The sides are presently engaged in indirect negotiations in Doha, aimed at reaching another truce.

In his statement on Monday, Netanyahu said Baharav-Miara's announcement was "appalling" and that its timing raised serious questions.

Netanyahu's government has for months been seeking the dismissal of Baharav-Miara. The attorney general, appointed by the previous government, has sparred with Netanyahu's cabinet over the legality of some of its policies.