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Al-Ahram Weekly 9 - 15 March 2000 Issue No. 472 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 9 - 15 March 2000 Issue No. 472
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Features Focus Books Travel Living Sports Profile People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Messages from Egypt
By Ibrahim Nafie
In a few days, President Hosni Mubarak will set off to Washington to meet with President Clinton and US administration leaders, as well as Congressional leaders and the heads of major industrial institutions.
As always in such meetings between Egyptian and US heads of state, Mubarak will be taking to Washington Egyptian and Arab concerns. The US administration is well aware of this. After all, President Mubarak does not represent an ordinary nation, but rather a pivotal regional power, the impact of whose policies and actions it would be pure impudence to deny.
Some might hold that a visit at this time will produce little of lasting value since, in a few months time, Clinton will be replaced in the Oval Office by a new president who will bring with him a different administration. As a result, any agreements Mubarak and Clinton might arrive at during their talks could be rejected by the incoming administration.
Such reasoning, however, is inconsistent with the exigencies of sound diplomacy. In addition, it fails to comprehend the nature of Egyptian-US relations, which have a self-sustaining dynamic founded upon a long-range partnership. This partnership, in turn, is governed by a set of mutually held convictions and shared interests and objectives which will always provide a foundation on which to build regardless of whether the individuals concerned come or go.
The convening of an Egyptian-US summit, moreover, is no random occurrence. Rather, it reflects how our bilateral relations have strengthened as a result of the many positive developments that have contributed to shaping these relations over the past 25 years. It is well known that, through the cumulative effect of these developments, US-Egyptian relations have acquired their own mechanisms of progress, of handling sudden contingencies and of searching for common ground under any given circumstance.
In my opinion, the Middle East is at a juncture that demands Egyptians and Americans meet at the highest levels in order to prevent a standstill in the peace process. In particular, it is vital for both sides to explore ways to contain those irresponsible tendencies of certain parties to renege on major commitments essential to the current stability and future prosperity of the region. The price for such senseless and unjustifiable recklessness will be great for all, including US interests.
It is always important to avail ourselves of every opportunity to further joint interests and to maintain our relations with all US political figures. Vice President Al Gore, for example, is a powerful candidate for the presidency. But President Mubarak, as we have seen in his previous visits to the US, is always keen to meet with representatives of both major US political parties and, indeed, such meetings are scheduled for his forthcoming visit.
Furthermore, that these meetings coincide with the run-up to the US presidential elections is of major importance to both US-Egyptian bilateral relations and the peace process. In the heat of US presidential campaigns, as we have seen before, candidates tend to overlook the importance of securing a balanced peace in the Middle East in their bid to win over a certain segment of US public opinion. The statements and pledges they make in the process frequently conflict with US interests in the region and, of course, with Arab interests. The result, frequently, is intense confusion and anxiety. This is, therefore, an especially crucial time for Mubarak to go to the US in order to press home the principles of a just peace and the need for the US to abide by the agreements it, itself, has signed, and to act as a fair arbiter in the peace process. In performing this task, President Mubarak will be carrying out some vital preemptive diplomacy.
If US-Egyptian relations are strong and founded upon a self-sustaining dynamic, this does not mean that they can dispense with continual follow-through, especially in the face of sudden contingencies or attempts to belittle or deliberately misrepresent Egyptian efforts. Previous US-Egyptian summit meetings have proven an excellent occasion for us to explain the Egyptian point of view to those who are in a position to influence US policy making as regards US-Egyptian economic, military and political relations. On this occasion, too, Egyptians feel that there are certain facts that must be made clear to all influential parties in the US political arena.
Firstly, in spite of the many regional and international changes that have taken place over the past decade, Egypt remains a pivotal regional power. The deeply rooted, vibrant dynamism of Egypt's regional role is an irrefutable, immutable constant, and no one should entertain the delusion that it is possible to implement a strategic framework that can fully supplant this role, encroaching upon Egypt's interests and the dynamics that Egypt can call into play if it wishes to take some action or other.
Secondly Egypt, as past and recent history testifies, is dedicated to the establishment of peace and stability in the region. It has furnished, and continues to furnish, all political and moral support for the peace process. Indeed, it is no exaggeration to say that were it not for Egypt the other Arab parties would not have participated in the peace process.
Thirdly, Egypt's commitment to peace is founded on a specific set of principles. Above all, such a peace must be just and comprehensive, which in turn necessitates the implementation of all the relevant international resolutions, the adherence to the principle of land for peace and the imperative of implementing all agreements that have been reached so far. In this context, it is Egypt's belief that Israel is fully responsible for the stagnation of negotiations on the Syrian and Palestinian tracks. Egypt is further convinced that the Israeli conception of peace -- a conception which emphasises normalisation with Israel and unreserved submission to Israeli security demands while Israel itself reneges on all previously concluded pledges and commitments -- is inimical to a just and lasting peace and, as such, inherently carries the seeds of instability, violence and war.
Events in southern Lebanon alone should serve as a sobering portent of what the Israeli conception of peace will bring. I imagine that a good portion of the US-Egyptian talks will focus on the damage Israel's actions in Lebanon have done to the prospects of peace and how important it is to keep that situation from deteriorating further.
Fourthly, that Egypt is seeking to stimulate inter-Arab relations by no means implies that it is seeking to rally the Arabs as a bloc against any particular party. As elder sister to all Arab countries, Egypt sees it as its responsibility to improve conditions for regional relations which, in turn, will be conducive to the regional stability to which Egypt is committed. Thus, contrary to the assertions being put about by Israeli circles, Egypt's diplomacy in the Arab world does not aim to hamper the peace process, but rather to forestall aggression against fellow Arab nations and to promote the cause of peace. This is why Egypt has campaigned to contain unwarranted violence targeting innocent civilians and civil infrastructure, while supporting the legitimate right to resist occupation, a principle enshrined by the UN charter and upheld by international law and custom.
Fifthly, democracy, human rights and institutions of civil society in Egypt are progressing day by day. In addition, Egypt has proven itself highly successful in countering extremist violence within the framework of the law and the preservation of society's higher interests. Simultaneously, Egypt stands firm against all attempts to divide the people of this nation on the basis of religion and will relentlessly counter any party, regardless of their political or religious position, that seeks to jeopardise the unity of the nation and the well being of its society.
Sixthly, Egypt's success over recent years in restructuring its economy, however important, has only taken us part of the way towards our higher objectives, which are greater assimilation into the global economy, greater levels of technical progress and increased export trade within a greater diversity of markets. However, there still remain major tasks ahead, all of which require careful planning, optimising the utilisation of our available resources and cooperating with friends, in the forefront of which, of course, is the US.
It is no secret that Egypt has a major bone to pick with the US because of its paltry level of direct investment in Egypt, a level nowhere near commensurate with the scale of political and strategic interaction between the two countries. Egypt specifically wants the US to increase its investments in those fields that contribute to the development and transfer of modern technology. What makes Egypt more determined in this desire is that the Egyptian investment climate is now more than adequately equipped with the legal, technical and commercial incentives for such investment. Specialised international agencies have testified in numerous reports to the potential of the Egyptian investment environment now that measures have been taken to facilitate and secure investment in an extensive and promising market. Egypt has another demand from the US that it has voiced on many previous occasions and will reiterate again. This is for the US to lift restrictions barring the entrance of Egyptian exports into the American market. Not only should these restrictions be subject to immediate review, the US should also consider offering facilities to Egyptian products that have demonstrated their ability to compete favorably with their counterparts worldwide.
Above are the messages which President Mubarak will take with him on his forthcoming visit to Washington. However, we should not overlook the fact that while Egypt is a major power within the region, the US is the largest power in our contemporary world, with interests and strategies that span the globe. Egyptian-US relations are a vibrant model of a balanced bilateral relationship that observes the joint interests between an influential regional power and the sole superpower. If Egypt is sensitive to the role of this superpower, the US, in turn, should not undervalue Egypt's influence and efficacy both locally and regionally.
