Significant influence

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It must be saddening for many Egyptians, on both the popular and official levels, to admit that one of the more obvious outcomes of the Israeli war on Lebanon is to show just how Egypt's position as a leading regional power has been eroded.

Egyptian intellectuals began to question Egypt's ability to exercise regional, or at least Arab, leadership several years ago but it is only with the war on Lebanon that the matter has assumed a degree of urgency in the Egyptian street. Why, asked many, could Cairo, which has longstanding ties with Washington and Tel Aviv and is supposed to carry weight in other Arab capitals, not have helped in securing an earlier end to the war. Others wondered whether Egypt's one-time leadership role had been abandoned in favour of becoming a follower of an increasingly influential Saudi Arabia.

While the establishment position is that Egypt remains a leading player it is a long time since anyone has seen it acting in a way commensurate with that position.

Realism is a virtue. Following Anwar El-Sadat's unilateral peace deal with Israel Egypt lost its unquestioned leadership of the Arab world and while President Hosni Mubarak has managed to repair much of the damage regaining all the influence and prestige Cairo once enjoyed has proved impossible.

As Egypt saw its cultural edge being eroded, and sank into ever deeper economic woes, it has been forced to concentrate on pressing domestic issues, often at the expense of its regional role.

To regain Egypt's influence as a leading regional power is not a job to be undertaken exclusively by the state. It is first and foremost an intellectual and national endeavour that must be undertaken whatever the hardships.

An economic and cultural revival is essential. A political -- both domestic and foreign -- is long overdue.

Egypt's foreign policy stances deserve more attention than they have received, especially at a time when the foreign minister is being attacked for following a diplomatic line that is essentially decided by the state.

Egypt could upgrade its profile as a leading Arab state without having to go too far in compromising its much vaunted good relations with the US and desire to maintain stable relations with Israel. Indeed, it is essential for Egypt to do so. Should it lose its influence in the Arab world it will automatically lose its most singular asset in conducting its relations with both the US and Israel.