Ruslan Pukhov, member of the Advisory Board of the Russian Defense Ministry, told the U.S. Bloomberg network that Egypt is concluding a Russian arms deal estimated at US$2 billion for MiG-29 fighter jets, air defense systems and anti-tank missiles.
Meanwhile, the Russian foreign and defense ministers, Sergei Lavrov and Sergei Shoigu, are visiting Egypt on Wednesday for two days to discuss military technical cooperation.
Bloomberg said Russia has been signing arms deals with Egypt since the Cold War and the time of Sadat and seeks to take advantage of the decision of U.S. President Barack Obama to cut military aid to Cairo.
For his part, Igor Korotchenko, member of the Advisory Board of the Russian Defense Ministry, said the question is whether Egypt is able to pay for the arms. “We are ready to supply a wide range of weapons to meet Egypt’s requirements,” he said.
However, an Egyptian Foreign Ministry spokesperson did not mention any arms agreements and said the Russian officials came to talk about politics, commerce, security and tourism.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
