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Al-Ahram Weekly 21 - 28 January 1999 Issue No. 413 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 21 - 28 January 1999 Issue No. 413
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Focus Economy Opinion Culture Features Living Travel Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Taking a chance on Iraq?
The Arab foreign ministers' meeting that will convene in Cairo on Sunday represents both an opportunity and a challenge, even if not all the Arab foreign ministers will be there. Throughout a month of intensive contacts and consultations with Arab and non-Arab parties, Egyptian diplomacy has done all it can to ensure that the many holes in the Iraqi cause are patched up to the best advantage of the people themselves.The inspections regime cannot be prolonged eternally, the results of its work must be made public and recognised by all concerned parties, and as Iraq progressively honours its international obligations, it can no longer be marginalised to the point of being virtually excluded from the Arab family.
The ultimate objective is to ensure that the interests of the Iraqi people are no longer held hostage, either by the miscalculations of the Iraqi government in dealing with the current crisis, or by the complex equations of international power play. What is more, the Arab world should not stand by and let itself be deprived of what used to be one of the major components of its strength.
To this end, Egypt has been talking to all concerned Arab states about the need to see the Iraqi issue within the wider context of Arab national security. It has even been talking to the US about the regional and international importance of maintaining the territorial integrity of Iraq.
On Sunday, Egypt will again seek to facilitate the accommodation of both the legitimate Kuwaiti demands that their own security be respected and the pressing need for the Arab world to overcome the disabling divisions that have undermined its strategic presence since the Iraqi invasion of its neighbour.
A successful outcome to this meeting would put Egypt in a better position on 27 January, when the time comes to tell Madeleine Albright that another US-British strike would have less support than ever from the governments of the Arab world.
