Iran president pays rare visit to Egypt in latest sign of thawing ties

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian headed to Cairo late on Wednesday in the first visit by an Iranian president to Egypt in more than 10 years, signaling a potential thaw in Egyptian-Iranian relations, which have been strained for decades.

Pezeshkian arrived to attend the 11th summit of the D-8 Organization for Economic Cooperation, slated to begin on Thursday.

The D-8, consisting of eight developing Muslim countries — Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Turkey — was founded in 1997 in Turkey.

In a statement to reporters prior to departing Tehran, Pezeshkian emphasized the importance of Iran strengthening ties with Muslim countries to counter regional threats.