Iranian, Egyptian Officials Discuss Start of Direct Flights between Tehran, Cairo

Head of Iran’s Interests Section in Cairo Mojtaba Amani and Egypt’s Civil Aviation Minister Wael al-Maaddawi explored avenues for the further expansion of ties between the two Muslim countries specially in the field of aviation.

During the meeting held in Cairo on Monday, the two sides conferred on the establishment of direct flights between the two countries, the Islamic republic news agency reported.

In August, the then Egypt’s Civil Aviation Minister Samir Embaby had called for the start of direct flights between Tehran and Cairo due to the two nations’ enthusiasm for making reciprocal visits.

“The measure is necessary due to the eagerness of many Egyptian and Iranian people to make reciprocal visits,” Embaby was quoted by the Egyptian weekly, al-Youm al-Sabe’ at the time.

He also underlined that starting direct flights between the two countries would play a vital role for trade and economic ties between Iran and Egypt, and said the economic studies carried out in Iran indicate that 60% of Iranians like to visit different Egyptian cities, partly for religious tourism.

After the collapse of Hosni Mubarak’s regime, the Iranian and Egyptian officials voiced their interest in the resumption of diplomatic relations between the two countries.