Turkey and Egypt have planned a joint military naval exercise in the eastern Mediterranean, only a few days after Greece carried out a surprise military drill in the Aegean Sea involving all three branches.
This marks the first time the two countries have conducted a joint military exercise after 13 years, signifying the rekindling of cooperation between Ankara and Cairo in the armed forces industry.
Last month, the Turkish media outlet Daily Sabah, a pro-Erdogan newspaper, reported that Egypt had expressed interest in a Turkish next-generation stealth fighter plane program, which is still in its infancy.
The Turkish-Egyptian naval exercise, named “Türkiye-Egypt Friendship Sea / Bahr El Sadaka – Naval Exercise Special Drill”, is scheduled to take place between September 22 and 26, according to reports by Greek media outlet Skai.
The last time the two Mediterranean countries took part in a joint military drill was in 2012.
Zeki Aktürk, spokesperson for the Turkish Ministry of Defense, made the following statement:
“The Turkey-Egypt Joint Naval Operations Exercise, Bahr El Sadaka (Sea of Friendship), is scheduled to take place in the Eastern Mediterranean.
This exercise, being held for the first time in 13 years, will involve elements of our Naval Forces (frigates TCG Oruçreis and TCG Gediz, fast patrol boats TCG İmbat and TCG Bora, and the submarine TCG Gür), the Air Force (two F-16 fighter jets), as well as units from the Egyptian Navy.
The Commander of our Naval Forces and the Commander of the Egyptian Naval Forces will attend the Distinguished Visitors’ Day event on September 25.”
Despite multiple visits by Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi to Greece and the ostensibly strong bilateral ties between the two nations as pillars of stability in the wider eastern Mediterranean region, relations went temporarily sour after the crisis at the historic Mount Sinai Monastery (St. Catherine’s Monastery), located in Egypt.
The diplomatic crisis between Athens and Cairo over the Mount Sinai Monastery, which seemingly simmered down, involved the legal status and the governance of the historic site, listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site.
