Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has invited his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, to attend the inauguration of the new Suez Canal project, scheduled to take place in August. Sisi extended the invitation to Putin at meeting in Moscow on Saturday. The Egyptian president was in Russia to attend celebrations marking the 70th anniversary of Nazi Germany's surrender in 1945. The widening of the already operational Suez Canal will create a new lane to allow for ships to pass in opposite directions at the same time. The government estimates that the new project, which was announced in August 2014, will double the canal's revenues by 2023. On Saturday Putin expressed his country's support for "all steps taken by Egypt," an Egyptian presidential statement read. The pair also discussed the importance of forming a previously agreed-on committee for bilateral economic, commercial and logistical cooperation. Egypt and Russia have been taking steps to strengthen their relationship. Russia was the first foreign country the Egyptian leader visited after being elected president in 2014. In February, Putin visited Egypt and signed a number of cooperation agreements including a deal to construct a nuclear power plant to generate electricity in Egypt.
