The Minister of Economy of Turkey, Nihat Zeybekci, said that Egypt refuses to extend the agreement with Turkey on marine cargo shipment by ro-ro type vessels.
According to him, currently the sides are discussing the issue of extending the agreement on cargo shipment by ro-ro type vessels, but there are disagreements on political grounds between the two countries, which arose after the overthrow of Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi.
He also said that Ankara hopes Cairo extends this agreement with Turkey. “If the Egyptian authorities don’t extend the agreement on maritime cargo shipment by ro-ro type vessels, Ankara will consider alternatives,” Trend cited the minister.
Turkey launched sea shipments of ro-ro type vessels to Egypt, Israel and Saudi Arabia in November 2012. The shipments are carried out from the Turkish port of Iskenderun to the Egyptian port of Alexandria, and from there to the Israeli port of Haifa.
The main reason for the cargo transportation through the Egyptian port is to stop transportation through Syria due to the political crisis in the country.
