A nuanced neutrality

Doaa El-Bey , Wednesday 1 Mar 2023

Egypt is maintaining a balanced position on the Russia-Ukraine conflict. During the past 12 months Cairo has repeatedly called on Moscow, Kyiv and involved international parties to pursue dialogue in order to peacefully resolve the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

A nuanced neutrality
An archival photo of Al-Sisi with Zelensky

 

Though some political commentators questioned Egypt’s vote last week supporting the resolution of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) calling on Russia to end hostilities in Ukraine, Cairo reiterated that it voted in accordance with its “deep commitment” to the UN Charter’s rejection of the use of force in international relations.

Egypt maintains good relations with both states, said one diplomat who preferred to remain anonymous. They are both important exporters of wheat and Egypt is the world’s largest importer of the grain. Tourists from the two countries also accounted for around 40 per cent of tourist flows into Egypt before the war.

“Egypt hoped the UNGA resolution would initiate mechanisms to settle the crisis a year of conflict led to a worldwide food and energy crisis,” said the diplomat.

Food security was addressed by President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky during their phone conversation last week. Both presidents agreed on the importance of continuing the grain export initiative, said the statement issued by the Egyptian presidency.

Concluded in Turkey last July, the grain corridor initiative between Russia and Ukraine allowed for the safe export of grain from named ports in an attempt to address the food crisis after the war that erupted in February last year led to a complete halt of maritime grain shipments from Ukraine. According to the European Commission, Ukraine supplies 10 per cent of the world’s wheat market, 15 per cent of the corn market and 13 per cent of the barley market.

In their phone conversation, Al-Sisi also stressed the importance of stabilising the world food market. Zelensky agreed, sharing his country’s efforts in safeguarding food security, especially in Africa.

The two presidents also discussed the latest developments in Ukraine. Al-Sisi reiterated Egypt firm stand in supporting efforts to calm the situation and reach a peaceful solution.

The UNGA vote was also an opportunity to remind the international community that double standards in dealing with crises will lead to the erosion of international law and the system of international legitimacy, a point highlighted in the statement of Osama Abdel-Khalek, head of Egypt’s permanent mission to the UN in New York.

Abdel-Khalek said the vote was prompted by the humanitarian and economic consequences of the war extending to everyone, not only the conflicting parties, and note “developing countries, including Egypt, are still suffering directly from the continuation of the crisis”.

His statement stressed the need to address the roots of the crisis in a way that guarantees the security concerns of all parties in an equal, fair and sustainable manner.

The resolution, drafted by Ukraine in consultation with its allies, passed 141-7, with 32 abstentions.

It was not the first time Egypt has voted for a resolution calling for Russia to end hostilities in Ukraine. In March, Egypt joined 140 other nations voting in favour of a resolution calling on Russia to withdraw its military forces from Ukraine, and in October voted for a UN resolution condemning Russia’s annexation of Ukrainian regions.

President Al-Sisi also appealed at the opening of the COP27 Climate Change Conference in Sharm El-Sheikh last November for an end to the war in Ukraine.

During his visit to Moscow in January, Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukri said that he had underlined to his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov that Egypt backed an end to the military confrontation in Ukraine in a way that meets the interests of all involved parties and would “keep following up on developments within the framework of our bilateral and multilateral relationship with the involved parties.” Lavrov, for his part, said Moscow appreciates Egypt’s “balanced” stand on the crisis in Ukraine.

Shoukri’s visit to Moscow followed his meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken during the latter’s visit to Cairo in January, and he delivered a message from Blinken to Lavrov. Egypt is also a member of the Arab liaison group which seeks to mediate a resolution to the conflict and includes Jordan, Algeria, Iraq, Sudan, and the UAE.

Cairo and Moscow have long been keen to improve their relations. In August, the two countries plan to organise celebrations to mark the 80th anniversary of their diplomatic ties. Bilateral relations have noticeably improved in recent years, and a strategic cooperation treaty was signed in 2018. They are cooperating over the construction of Egypt’s first nuclear power plant at Al-Dabaa, and trade between them has reached $6 billion. Cooperation extends across the industrial, military and technical fields.

On the international level, the two countries have also consulted over the Palestinian Israeli conflict and ongoing crises in Syria and Libya.

Cairo is expected to maintain its neutral diplomatic position, said the diplomat.


* A version of this article appears in print in the 2 March, 2023 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly

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