Egypt-Turkey Air Transport Accords Still Effective Despite Lowered Diplomatic Ties

Egyptian Minister of Civil Aviation Abdel Aziz Fadel asserted on Sunday that his country’s move to reduce diplomatic representation between Cairo and Ankara will not affect the ongoing air transport agreements between the two countries, for being international ones.

Minister Fadel further said flights between the two countries are few since Egyptians abstain from traveling to Turkey, and so as the flights coming from Turkey. Therefore the two countries’ airlines do not stick to certain number of flights as pursuant to the agreements. The number of flights reach 30 weekly due to low number of passengers, he noted.

On Saturday, Egypt has decided to recall its ambassador to Turkey and expel the Turkish envoy in Cairo.

A statement issued by Egyptian foreign ministry’s  spokesman said the government has decided to lower diplomatic representation to the level of charge d’affaires. It said the Turkish ambassador to Cairo has been considered persona non grata and would be ordered to leave the country because of Turkey’s continued “interference” in Egyptian internal affairs.

“We decided to withdraw our ambassador from Turkey and summon the Turkish ambassador in Cairo to inform him he is no longer persona non grata and ask him to leave,” Badr Abdel Aaty said.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has repeatedly criticized the move to depose Morsi as well as the military’s actions against Morsi’s supporters. That includes a crackdown on pro-Morsi demonstrators in August that left hundreds dead.

Foreign Ministry Spokesman Badr Abdelatty said on Saturday that Turkey had attempted to “influence public opinion against public interests [and] supported meetings of organizations that seek to create instability in the country.”