Sisi’s 2026 Asian Tour: New Partnerships Across Korea, Malaysia & Indonesia
CAIRO, 12 October 2026 — Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi returned home at dawn on Monday from a six-day tour of South Korea, Malaysia and Indonesia, saying about 20 agreements and memoranda of understanding were signed along the way.
Speaking at Cairo International Airport, with Information Minister Diaa Rashwan present, the president described the official and public welcome in all three countries as impressive and said it reflected Egypt’s standing abroad. He said the agreements aim to increase trade and to bring Egypt’s trade balance with the three countries into better balance.
The tour, which ran from 6 to 11 October, lifted Egypt’s relations with South Korea to a strategic partnership, produced four memoranda in Malaysia, and led to an action plan with Indonesia, where the two sides also pushed ahead with a trade deal and a joint investment fund.
- Who: President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, in office since June 2014.
- Where and when: South Korea, Malaysia and Indonesia, 6–11 October 2026; home in Cairo at dawn on 12 October.
- Headline results: a strategic partnership and the start of trade-deal talks with South Korea; four memoranda with Malaysia; a strategic partnership action plan with Indonesia.
- Total signed: about 20 agreements and memoranda, according to the president.
South Korea: a strategic partnership and a trade deal in the making
The president arrived in Seoul on 6 October for a state visit that officials said was his first to South Korea in ten years, since 2016. Korean President Lee Jae Myung had visited Cairo in November 2025, marking 30 years of diplomatic ties.
The two leaders met at the presidential office on Thursday 8 October, after a welcome ceremony that included both national anthems and a children’s choir. Lee had earlier said he hoped the “miracle on the Han River” and the “miracle on the Nile” would combine to bring shared prosperity.
At a joint news conference the two countries announced a strategic partnership and the launch of negotiations on a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, or CEPA. Such a pact is a broad trade deal that goes beyond tariffs to cover areas like investment. Talks have only begun, and no deal has been reached.
Daily News Egypt reported that 12 agreements were signed in Seoul. They included a social security agreement, which SBS News said made South Korea the first Asian country to sign one with Egypt, easing double pension payments for workers sent abroad. Memoranda covered information technology, clean energy, industry and trade, and maritime cooperation, according to the State Information Service.
The president also joined a roundtable with the heads of major Korean companies, and Seoul named next year the “Korea-Egypt Year of Mutual Cultural Exchange”.
Malaysia: palace honours and four memoranda
El-Sisi flew to Kuala Lumpur on Friday 9 October for a two-day state visit at the invitation of Sultan Ibrahim, Malaysia’s king. Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim went straight from presenting the national budget in parliament to the airport to meet him.
Malaysia’s Foreign Ministry said it was the president’s first state visit there since he took office in June 2014, and Malay Mail described it as the first by an Egyptian president in nearly three decades. The two countries have had diplomatic relations since 1959.
On Saturday the king welcomed him at the national palace, Istana Negara, at 10:08 a.m. and hosted a state banquet. The Middle East Observer reported that the king also conferred Malaysia’s highest state honour, the Order of the Crown of the Realm.
After talks with Anwar, the two sides exchanged four memoranda of understanding on women’s empowerment, higher education, tourism and investment, and moved toward a strategic partnership, Bernama reported. Trade between the two countries rose 74.7 percent to $870 million in the first eight months of 2026, according to The Middle East Observer; Malay Mail put the same period at 3.49 billion ringgit.
Anwar said Malaysia was exploring buying medicines from emerging economies and named Egypt as a possible supplier. He also thanked the president for helping Malaysia deliver humanitarian aid to Palestinians, including bringing injured people from Gaza to Malaysia for treatment. The president’s aircraft left at 4:38 p.m.
Indonesia: an action plan and a joint investment fund
The final stop was Jakarta. The president landed at Halim Perdanakusuma air base at about 5:30 p.m. on Saturday, escorted on approach by six Indonesian fighter jets, ANTARA reported. On Sunday, President Prabowo Subianto received him at Merdeka Palace.
“An important milestone in strengthening our partnership,” President Prabowo said of the visit, as quoted by ANTARA.
Foreign Ministers Arrmanatha Nasir and Badr Abdelatty signed a Strategic Partnership Action Plan, building on the strategic partnership the two countries agreed in April 2025. Other documents covered visas, statistics, maritime affairs and fisheries; ANTARA also listed investment, the defence industry, education and trade among the areas of cooperation.
The leaders said they would work toward an Economic Partnership Agreement and welcomed a plan for a joint investment fund between Indonesia’s sovereign investment body Danantara and The Sovereign Fund of Egypt. Time News reported a target of $5 billion in bilateral trade by 2030. Prabowo also welcomed Egypt’s offer of more university scholarships for Indonesian students in medicine, engineering and science.
The two presidents also discussed Palestine and the wider Middle East conflict. It was El-Sisi’s first visit to Indonesia since 2015, and it returned visits Prabowo made to Egypt in 2024 and 2025. The president flew home that afternoon.
Why Egypt is looking east
The Egyptian presidency said the tour was meant to strengthen political, economic and investment ties with the three countries. Analysts quoted by the newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat said the focus was on economic partnerships and on drawing high-technology industries to Egypt, at a time of turmoil in the Middle East.
Each stop offers something different. One commentator cited by Egypt Telegraph pointed to South Korea’s industrial and technological strength, Malaysia’s experience in electronics and finance, and Indonesia’s large market and political reach. Other coverage described Egypt as positioning itself as a link between Arab, African and Asian markets.
This is not El-Sisi’s first Asian tour. The State Information Service records an earlier trip to Singapore, China and Indonesia from 30 August to 5 September 2015.
What happens next
El-Sisi said he wanted to move quickly to build on the results and that the job now falls to Egyptian officials to put the agreements into effect. Several of the biggest items are still early-stage: the South Korea trade talks have only just opened, and the Indonesian trade deal and investment fund are at the planning stage.
| Country | Documents | Main outcome |
|---|---|---|
| South Korea | 12 agreements and memoranda | Strategic partnership; trade-deal talks launched |
| Malaysia | 4 memoranda | Steps toward a strategic partnership |
| Indonesia | 4 announced beforehand (estimate) | Strategic partnership action plan |
| Total | About 20, per the president |
A note on the figures
Reports differ on a few details. Several Egyptian outlets say the tour ran from 6 to 11 October, while Al-Ahram says 6 to 12 October; the visits ended on 11 October and the president reached Cairo on the 12th. Malaysian trade appears in dollars in one report and ringgit in another. The Indonesian count above is an estimate based on the four documents the foreign minister announced before the meeting, and the 12 + 4 + 4 sum is only a cross-check against the president’s own figure of about 20, not an official breakdown.
Sources
- State Information Service of Egypt: signing of agreements in Seoul and Malaysian prime minister receives President Sisi; its Arabic page on the 2015 Asian tour.
- Daily News Egypt: Egypt and South Korea elevate relations to strategic partnership.
- SBS News (Korea): strategic partnership and CEPA launch.
- Malay Mail: state welcoming ceremony at Istana Negara.
- Bernama: El-Sisi departs Malaysia after two-day state visit.
- The Middle East Observer: Malaysia visit and trade figures.
- ANTARA News: arrival in Jakarta, agreements signed and economic partnership push.
- Time News: Indonesia and Egypt target US$5 billion in bilateral trade.
- Al-Watan, Masrawy, Al-Ahram Gate and Tawasul News (Arabic) on the president’s return and remarks; Asharq Al-Awsat and Egypt Telegraph (Arabic) for analysis.
This report is independent journalism by qpnet, compiled from official releases and the news outlets listed above. Statements are paraphrased, and figures are given as each source reported them. qpnet is not affiliated with any government. To report an error or newer information, please comment below; any change will be reflected in the “Updated” date. More world news is on the qpnet homepage.
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