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Al-Ahram Weekly 18 - 24 February 1999 Issue No. 417 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 18 - 24 February 1999 Issue No. 417
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Features Special Travel Living Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters A passage to Russia
By Aziza SamiHow can erstwhile allies re-chart their course in the new unipolar world order? This was the question raised at a symposium entitled "Arab-Russian Dialogue" organised by the Egyptian chapter of the Afro-Asian Solidarity Organisation and the Russian Society for Afro-Asian Solidarity and Cooperation.
Opening statements to the symposium -- the fifth to be organised on the same theme -- were made on behalf of Egyptian Foreign Minister Amr Moussa and Secretary-General of the Arab League Esmat Abdel-Meguid.
The heavily-attended symposium brought together representatives from several Arab countries, including a large Sudanese delegation headed by former prime minister and head of the Sudanese Umma Party, El-Sadeq El-Mahdi, the Russian ambassador to Cairo, Vladimir Goudev, and prominent Egyptian figures, including opposition party leaders and a number of former ministers.
Lambasting the current unipolar world order, El-Mahdi said that "the international order, with its current conditions, cannot regulate the world, because its sole superpower [the US] is dealing with sovereign states over which it really exercises no power."
Economic, political and military challenges are now posed to America's hegemony by European Union states, such as Germany and France, and by Asian countries, such as China and Japan, El-Mahdi argued. Although Russia at the moment does not have the political clout of the former Soviet Union, it can still re-assert itself as a military power rivalling the US, he said.
"An alliance can be forged between Russia and the Arab countries only when both sides overcome their internal weaknesses and become players capable of dealing with the various members of the current world order, the US included," El-Mahdi added.
Goudev said that Russia has not been completely demoted in the new world order, despite recent political and economic troubles, because it still is "the world's second nuclear power."
Under Prime Minister Yvgeni Primakov, "an end has been put to policies which made Russia trail behind the US. Bilateral relations between Russia and the Arab countries are beginning to flourish again. They had receded in the early 1990s" after the collapse of the Soviet Union, said Goudev. "Now, Russia is following policies which are more in line with its aspirations in the Arab world," he added. Russia has condemned the US-British air strikes against Iraq, and is making an active effort to resolve the crisis by urging Baghdad to adhere to UN Security Council resolutions and demanding an end to economic sanctions, said Goudev. It also supports President Hosni Mubarak's position on nuclear disarmament.
But Goudev conceded that economic relations need a boost and that Russian businesses are not sufficiently attracted to the Arab markets. Economic ties have been affected by the Soviet Union's demise, he said, citing as an example the fact that there are currently no easy means of conducting bank transactions between Russia and the Arab countries.
Seif El-Garwan, former minister of labour in the United Arab Emirates, said that Russia has had trade interests in the Gulf region that date back to the 19th century. El-Garwan suggested the establishment of a joint Arab-Russian body, either through the Arab League or the Arab Economic Cooperation Council.
El-Garwan said that the Islamic states of the Commonwealth of Independent States are a potential market for oil and gas, and Arab oil-producers should discuss export plans to them, specifically Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan.
However, criticism was directed at Russia's "quasi-absence from the Middle East peace process," as a former Egyptian diplomat, Omran El-Shafei, put it. "If Russia wants to build up strong relations with the Arab states, it cannot remain uninvolved. Your [Russia's] participation should be by action, and not just words," he said.
Sharp criticism was also directed at Russia by one participant "for condoning and supporting the barbaric practices of the Serbs against the Muslims of [former] Yugoslavia and Albania."
But despite the criticism, "the strong attendance today is significant," said Omar Abu Zeid, a member of Parliament's external relations committee, "Not only because it underscores the ties which once bound the Arab countries and the Soviet Union, and which can be revived by making new alliances with Russia, but also because it shows that there is an impatience with America's heavy-handed approach in the region, and a feeling that non-governmental action can play a role -- if only in the long run -- in opening new channels with Russia."
