The dramatic developments in Syria and the rapid downfall of the regime of former Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad earlier this month led President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi to hold urgent meetings with members of the Armed Forces, provincial governors, police officials, and chiefs of the security and intelligence agencies as well as journalists and media professionals in Cairo this week.

He discussed developments in both the regional and international arenas, particularly the change of regime in Syria, and their ramifications on Egypt’s national security and the work of the Armed Forces, civil police, and security apparatuses in safeguarding Egypt’s borders and internal front against different threats, Presidential Spokesman Mohamed Al-Shennawi said in a statement on 15 December.

President Al-Sisi said that Egypt is closely monitoring the developments in Syria because they have a direct impact on the rest of the Arab world.

“We have historical relations with Syria, and the Egyptian Embassy in Damascus will continue to perform there and share in rebuilding the country,” Al-Sisi said, expressing the hope that God will save Syria through the hands of the Syrians themselves and not those of any foreign forces.

“The fate of any country depends on what its people decide about its future and not anyone else. They have the option either to demolish the country or to rebuild it,” Al-Sisi said.

The president called for a comprehensive political process in Syria that includes all parties and reflects the diverse components of the Syrian people. “Egypt will do everything possible to help preserve Syria’s unity and territorial integrity, and it is ready to be involved in the reconstruction of the country,” he said.

Al-Sisi criticised Israel’s violation of the 1974 Disengagement Agreement with Syria and the occupation of the buffer zone between the two countries. “Israel has exploited the power vacuum in Syria to attack the country and destroy its military infrastructure. Egypt is coordinating with the Arab countries, the Arab League, and international powers to exert pressure on Israel,” he said.

Strategic and military thinker Samir Farag said President Al-Sisi’s urgent meeting with the military, police, and media came at a crucial time and was intended to send the message that the scenario unfolding in Syria could never be repeated in Egypt, which is wholly unlike countries living in a state of chaos and disintegration.

President Al-Sisi had wanted to emphasise Egypt’s strong military that can safeguard the country’s internal front and borders against any threats, Farag said.

He added that the situation in Syria had raised concerns among many Egyptian and Arab observers as those who had taken power there are Islamists and had sought help from foreign powers such as Turkey to bring about the downfall of the Al-Assad regime.

Farag said that newly-appointed Syrian Prime Minister Mohamed Bashir is affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood, a group designated as a terrorist organisation in Egypt and other countries.

“The growing influence of the Muslim Brotherhood in Syria will be a threat to the country’s future and could lead to partitioning it,” Farag said.

According to Farag, Abu Mohamed Al-Golani, head of the Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham group (formerly Al-Nusra Front) which seized power in Syria, had clearly received help from Turkish intelligence and the CIA in order to be able to oust Al-Assad.

“The head of the Turkish intelligence, which has close links with the Muslim Brotherhood, was the first foreign official to visit Syria after the fall of Bashar Al-Assad, while the US network CNN was the first to interview Al-Golani,” Farag said, adding that “in the past the US offered a $10 million reward to anyone who could help it arrest Al-Golani, but now he is reinvented as a statesman who can achieve democracy.”

“These developments show that the Muslim Brotherhood always lets itself be used by foreign intelligence in order to reach power, and this is enough to cause concern among many in the Arab world.”

President Al-Sisi told the media that the scenario in Syria could never be repeated in Egypt as long as Egyptians remained united with “one heart” with the army and the police. “The cohesion and unity of Egypt is the most crucial factor in preserving the state,” Al-Sisi said.

However, he indicated that “Egypt still faces two challenges ahead: the threat of terrorism and the danger of the forced displacement of Palestinians in Gaza into Egypt.”

“Maybe there are still some sleeper terrorist cells, but as long as Egyptians remain united behind their army and police we will be able to overcome these challenges,” Al-Sisi said, recalling that “since 2013 and the downfall of the Muslim Brotherhood regime, many terrorist organisations have tried to undermine the country, but because the army and police are strong we were able to defeat these organisations.”

He also warned that some elements may be spreading malicious rumours to break the confidence between the state and the people. “This is another challenge all Egyptians should be aware of,” Al-Sisi said.

Al-Sisi said that throughout his years in power, he has never had blood on his hands, taken foreign money, or appropriated one piastre from the state. “I like to tell the truth and hate lying, and I have always been keen not to cause harm to anybody or abuse citizens’ rights,” Al-Sisi said, adding that his instructions had always focused on fighting corruption and advancing human rights.

According to Al-Sisi, Egypt has gone through the most difficult phase of its economic reform programme, and now it is on the road to achieving long-term sustainable development. This is reflected in the confidence of the international financial institutions in the Egyptian economy, he said.

In terms of future economic policies, Al-Sisi said the government is aiming to boost the private sector’s contribution to the economy and localise industries to reduce the dependence on imports as much as possible and therefore reduce demand for foreign currency.

Al-Sisi stressed that the concept of strategic leadership goes beyond managing the Armed Forces to include state facilities and institutions. Moving government to the New Administrative Capital was part of a strategic plan to reorganise the state administration and achieve development, he said.

Relocating the state authorities “did not cost the state a single piastre,” he said.

Al-Sisi’s meeting with the army and police officials as well as the media was held at the Strategic Command in the New Administrative Capital east of Cairo.

In terms of foreign relations, President Al-Sisi said that communication was open with the new US administration and that there was mutual trust between the two countries as well as good personal relations between him and US President-elect Donald Trump.

“Our views are appreciated and accepted, and we will build on that to find solutions to unresolved regional issues in Gaza, Sudan, Libya, Lebanon and of course Syria,” Al-Sisi said.

He indicated that the strategic relationship between Egypt and the US had faced several tests, but it had proved strong, solid, and steadfast, while past experiences had shown the need for the US to maintain a strategic relationship with Egypt.

Al-Sisi reiterated the country’s efforts to secure a binding legal agreement with Ethiopia on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), adding that these efforts have been unsuccessful thus far due to Ethiopia’s intransigence and lack of political will.

He described any reduction in Egypt’s share of Nile water as a result of the operation of the GERD as an unacceptable existential threat.

* A version of this article appears in print in the 19 December, 2024 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly