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Al-Ahram Weekly 20 - 26 January 2000 Issue No. 465 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 20 - 26 January 2000 Issue No. 465
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Features Profile Travel Living Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Against military pacts
By Amira Ibrahim
Defence Minister Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi believes that some governments in the region have adopted policies that aim to foster military alliances in the Middle East. "These policies may represent a real threat to Egypt's national security, considering the continued conditions of instability in some countries of the region and the imposition of economic sanctions on others," Tantawi stated. The defence minister made these comments on Monday in his address to the national security committee of the People's Assembly.
He specified a number of threats to national security, such as attempts to divide the territorial unity of certain states, hegemonic ambitions, violence, fundamentalism and the military imbalance in the Middle East, in both its conventional and non-conventional dimensions. "Added to this, security and stability issues in the Mediterranean have a great impact on national security," he said.
"The need to maintain Egypt as a military and economic power for which others have respect remains a necessity," he added.
Tantawi alluded to a number of international, regional and local factors which have, directly or indirectly, affected Egyptian national security.
"Economic interests, particularly the trend to establish economic groupings and the change to a market economy, are of great importance in international relations because they serve as the basis for international economic cooperation," Tantawi stated.
"International peace and security, on the other hand, has been linked to such issues as democracy, human rights, arms control and the environment, with each issue having a high priority," he added.
The minister of defence explained that the general framework of Egypt's military policy is coordinated with the policies of other government sectors in order to meet national targets and goals.
In this context, Tantawi expounded on the main features of military policy, specifying the armed forces' political and military goals. Reviewing military expenditures, Tantawi said that the sources of funding for the defence ministry's budget include the government, US military aid and profits from the ministry's investments in civilian projects.
"We worked hard to realise a balance between the expansion of our military capabilities, in order to protect national security, and the need to rationalise expenditures. The solution was to emphasise quality, not quantity, in preparing a professional army," Tantawi said.
The minister underlined the increasing contribution of Egypt's armed forces to international peace-keeping missions, which "highlights the credibility of the abilities of our armed forces".
As for their local role, Tantawi said the armed forces have contributed to social and economic development by using their experience and abilities to benefit the entire country. They have worked in all vital sectors, including housing and new communities, constructing roads, repairing and maintaining railway lines as well as land reclamation in the southern valley.
In addition, the armed forces made available advanced medical services at moderate prices to people throughout the country, he said.
