Sparring presidents Erdogan and el-Sisi shake hands as they meet in Qatar for first time
- Turkey’s Erdogan and Egypt’s el-Sisi have been at odds since the 2013 ousting in Cairo of Islamist president Mohammed Mursi, who was backed by Erdogan
- Erdogan hinted that Turkey could revisit strained ties with regional countries including Egypt after next year’s election. Egypt’s presidency did not comment
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah el-Sisi met on Sunday in Qatar for the first time, a picture from Turkey’s presidency showed.
Erdogan and Sisi have been sparring since the military’s 2013 ousting in Cairo of Islamist president Mohammed Mursi, personally backed by Erdogan.
A Turkish official confirmed to Agence France-Presse the handshake in Doha during the opening ceremony for the Fifa World Cup.
Turkey has moved to warm ties with some regional foes including Egypt since last year but Cairo has not shown the same level of enthusiasm for a rapprochement as Ankara has.
The picture, however, showed a sincere handshake between the two leaders.
The Egyptian presidency did not comment on the meeting.
Erdogan hinted that Turkey could revisit strained ties with regional countries including Syria and Egypt after next year’s election.
