Trade and Industry Minister Tareq Qabil said that the member states of the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) agreed during its meeting in Saint Petersburg on Monday on starting free trade negotiations with Egypt, Iran, India and Singapore.

The decision, taken by the leaders of Russia, Kazakhstan, Armenia and Kyrgyzistan, comes to crown strenuous efforts exerted recently by the ministry, which involved high-level coordination with the EEU member states, the minister said.

A free trade agreement would represent a breakthrough at the level of trade and investment relations between Egypt and EEU states, he added in a statement.

The minister referred to his intensive talks with representatives of EEU member states during a forum in the Russian city of Saint Petersburg in June