Great hopes, potential opportunities for Sisi at UNGA

CAIRO – 18 September 2017: Great hopes seem to be hanging on President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi’s participation in the 72nd session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), expected to kick off Tuesday in New York.

“No doubt that all of the regional and Arab topics, crises and initiatives for reconciliation between the Arab parties will be discussed during Sisi’s talks and meetings on the sidelines of the UNGA,” Professor of Political Science at Cairo University Nourhan al-Sheikh told Egypt Today on Monday.

She added that several issues are expected to be on Sisi’s top list during his fourth participation in UNGA, which is completely different from sessions held during the past years, as it comes within a new prominent international role for Egypt.

Terrorism, development and Egypt’s economic relations are three major cases that come as a priority for Sisi, according to Sheikh, who explained that the UNGA can be a great opportunity for all of the international leaders, as it gives them the chance to talk, develop relations and round up their political views.

As for the terrorism part, Sheikh said that it is no longer a national or regional problem, but rather “it is a huge dilemma, which requires a lot of international mobilization to confront it.”

Fourth meeting between Sisi and Trump

“This is the fourth meeting within almost one year; this could be a major indicator that the Egyptian-American relations are based on several cases of mutual interest, and that the two leaders have a lot of to work on during the coming period,” political international affairs expert Ayman Samir told Egypt Today on Monday.

“About $21 billion is the total of the United States’ investment volume in Egypt. We are the biggest African country that deals most with the U.S. economically, and the second on the Arab level,” Samir said.

Furthermore, he described the American support of the Egyptian government as “unconditional” regarding all different issues, including countering terrorism. He said that Trump’s administration is willing to work and cooperate with its Egyptian counterpart, and that this is something that was very obvious during Trump and Sisi’s meeting in Riyadh last May.

Sisi’s first meeting with Trump was held on September 20, 2016, during Trump’s presidential campaign in New York on the sidelines of the UNGA then. Last April, Trump welcomed Sisi to the White House and held a meeting with him to discuss the wars and situations in the Middle East region.

Also, during the Arab Islamic American Summit held last May in Riyadh, President Sisi met with his American counterpart for the third time.

“Since being candidate for presidency, Trump’s statements towards Egypt were fixable and balanced. If we listed the international stances towards terrorism, the United States’ stance would be one of the firmest, which stood by Egypt since the first moment, and this includes our dispute with Qatar,” Sheikh said.

What about withholding the American aid?

Last August, the United States decided to deny Egypt $95.7 million in aid and to delay a further $195 million, which was strongly criticized by the Egyptian government. A statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on August 23 stated that Egypt regrets the decision by the U.S. to reduce some of the funds allocated under the U.S. assistance program to Cairo, considering the action as a “misjudgment” that could have negative implications on common interests.

“The Egyptian-American relationship is very complex and deep. I believe that decision was an ‘American’ one that has nothing related to its relations with Egypt and its government. The decision [of withholding the aid] depends on America's internal policy and their decision-making process; it does not represent Trump or even the whole American relations with Egypt,” Samir explained to Egypt Today.

Also according to Sheikh, the American president, due to the nature of the political environment in the U.S., can only be responsible for about 30 percent of the process of any decision making.

Egypt’s relations with the U.S. are regulated by the same roles and polices that regulate its relations with other countries; however, some of the American political bodies and entities still have a specific perspective regarding the Middle East countries. “I don’t think this is Trump’s problem,” Sheikh said.

How does being a U.N. Security Council member make a difference?

As a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), Egypt is perhaps more keen to discuss several regional cases seen as a priority, especially for an Arab and African countries, including the Libyan and Syrian wars, the Palestinian case and the Qatari-Arab dispute.

However, Sheikh said to Egypt Today that being a non-permanent member of the UNSC indeed enhances our chance in the UNGA, and gives Egypt more international capabilities; however, issues like the regional wars and crises are still a matter of “national security” to the country, which would still be discussed during the meetings and sessions as part of our priorities.

Egypt gave too much during its participation period in the UNSC, having issued several incentives and drafts that would help the council to control and solve crises, Samir stated.

Egypt won its two-year non-permanent member seat on the UNSC in January 2016, after receiving 179 out of 191 votes.