Russian-Egyptian deal to develop new nuclear power industry in Egypt - Putin

CAIRO, February 10. /TASS/. A nuclear power deal signed between Russia and Egypt means creating a new nuclear power industry in the North African country, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday. "We discussed today the possibility of cooperation in nuclear power engineering," Putin said, following the results of his visit to Egypt. "If final decisions are made, they will relate not only to the construction of a nuclear power plant but also to the creation of a whole new nuclear power industry in Egypt," Putin said. The Russian president said the deal signed between Russia and Egypt related to a whole package of measures, including the construction of the nuclear power plant, personnel training and the development of science. Despite all difficulties, which the North African country has had to live through, bilateral relations between Russia and Egypt have not declined and, on the contrary, approached new cooperation horizons, Putin said. The Russian-Egyptian talks prioritized economic cooperation issues, Putin said. "Bilateral trade increased by more than 80 percent in 2014," the Russian president said, citing statistics. "Intensive cooperation in agriculture is a key factor of such noticeable growth," Putin said. "The export of Russian wheat to Egypt doubled and imports of Egyptian agricultural produce expanded almost twofold," Putin said. Bilateral energy cooperation is also developing at a good pace, he said. Russia delivered over 1.4 million tons of petroleum products to Egypt in 2014 while Russian oil major LUKoil accounts for over a sixth of all oil extraction in Egypt, Putin said. Read more