(US) Egypt, Israel sign trade accord 25 years after peace treaty

CAIRO (AFP) - Egypt and Israel signed their first strategic partnership accord in trade and industry since their historic 1979 peace treaty.


The deal signed with the United States will lead to the establishment of joint industrial zones in Egypt from where goods will be exported to the United States duty free.


Egyptian Industry and Foreign Trade Minister Mohammed Rashid and Israeli deputy prime minister Ehud Olmert signed the agreement in the presence of Egyptian Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif and US Trade Representative Robert Zoellick.


more: http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1515&ncid=1515&e=1&u=/afp/20041214/wl_mideast_afp/egyptisraelustrade_041214111344

This is a short article, but it shows some very important changes within Israel. It will be interesting to see how the Palestinian situation changes.

~snip~

The agreement on Qualified Industrial Zones (QIZs), which opens the U.S. market to goods produced in Egypt with Israeli inputs, promises jobs for Egyptians while offering Israel a symbolic economic foothold in the largest Arab nation.


The Egyptian government says it is the first step toward a full free trade deal with the United States and that in the meantime it will help tide Egypt over when US quotas for imports of textiles and clothes -- which favor Egyptian producers -- expire in January.

~snip~

The reaction has been mixed within Egypt, where relations with Israel remain controversial 25 years after Cairo signed a peace treaty with the Jewish state.


Companies outside the seven zones are lobbying to be included, arguing that exclusion could lead to factory closures and layoffs, the Egyptian government said on Monday.

more: http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=574&ncid=723&e=3&u=/nm/20041214/wl_nm/trade_egypt_israel_dc

This is a better artice, more detail. This is an important news topic, and could mean many things. Time will tell.