Cairo and Riyadh last week tried to draw a line under the tensions that have marred relations between them since the death of King Abdullah eight months ago. On 29 July the state-owned Middle East News Agency reported that Deputy Crown Prince and Saudi Arabia's Minister of Defence Mohamed bin Salman would arrive in Cairo the following day to attend the graduation ceremony of officers from military academies alongside President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi. Bin Salman received a warm welcome from Al-Sisi “I tell his Highness, Deputy Crown Prince Mohamed, you had to be present with us at this celebration. This sends a very strong message, not only to the peoples of our two countries but also to other Gulf countries, that we are always together,” said Al-Sisi. “Given the circumstances our Arab region is facing we need to be together. We face many challenges and threats and we can only overcome them together. The truth is that Egypt and Saudi Arabia are the two wings of Arab national security. Together we can confront all challenges.” Following talks between Al-Sisi and Prince Mohamed on 30 July the “Cairo Declaration” was announced. Analysts say the most important portions of the text include a commitment to “develop military cooperation and work on the establishment of a joint Arab force” and, for the first time, to “mark maritime borders between the two countries”. The declaration also addressed investment, especially in the energy and electricity fields, joint projects and the promotion of greater political, cultural and media cooperation. On Friday 31 July Al-Sisi and King Salman bin Abdel-Aziz of Saudi Arabia agreed in a phone conversation to immediately effect the declaration. A day later Al-Sisi chaired the National Defence Council, which includes the ministers of defence, foreign affairs, chiefs of intelligence and commanders of army divisions, and announced Egyptian troops would remain stationed near Yemen to provide support for the Saudi-led joint force battling Houthi rebels for a further six months. King Abdullah was a strong supporter of Al-Sisi following the removal of Mohamed Morsi on 3 July 2013. As the US and European states reduced military and economic aid to Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) stepped in with support for the new regime, providing over $20 billion in grants and oil shipments. The late king was also quick to follow Egypt's lead and designate the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organisation. When King Salman took over he removed many of his predecessor's aides known for their strong support to Egypt. A chill appeared to settle on relations between the two countries and reports were soon circulating of differences over vital regional issues such as Iran, Syria, Yemen and Iraq. Commentators known for their close ties to the new king were increasingly critical of what they described as “Cairo's obsession with the Muslim Brotherhood” and the way it viewed all regional issues through a Brotherhood obsessed prism. While Saudi Arabia has been calling for the removal of Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad, Cairo has been less enthusiastic about this option, fearing Al-Assad will be replaced by a coalition of extremist groups led by the Brotherhood. And given Saudi Arabia's generous economic support of Egypt over the past two years it was difficult for Cairo not to back the Saudi war against Yemen though Saudi commentators have been unhappy about the level of support Egypt has offered, which is limited to naval ships. They wanted to see Egyptian troops on the ground. Cairo, meanwhile, is reportedly unhappy with Saudi support of the Muslim Brotherhood's branch in Sanaa. Egypt had also expected stronger support from Saudi Arabia for its stand on Libya and backing for the Tobruk-based government which is battling rebels led by the Brotherhood and based in Tripoli. After a group affiliated to IS, based in Iraq and Syria, brutally beheaded 21 Coptic Christian Egyptian workers in Libya in February Al-Sisi ordered an air raid against rebel bases around the city of Darna. Saudi Arabia's reaction was at best lukewarm, and Riyadh refused backing for Cairo's effort to secure a resolution from the Security Council that would provide weapons and support to the Tobruk-based government. Cairo was also unhappy when the new Saudi king entered into closer cooperation with Turkey and Qatar, both of which have offered outspoken support for Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood. King Abdullah had launched an initiative to improve ties between Egypt and Qatar, starting with a halt in heated attacks in the media, particularly the Qatari-owned Al-Jazeera network and a number of private Egyptian television channels. The initiative floundered with the arrival of the new king, and both the Qatari and Egyptian media upped their criticisms. The new Saudi regime also appeared more open than its predecessor to renewing contacts with Hamas, the Palestinian branch of the Brotherhood. “Egypt felt it was being pushed to take stands on sectarian grounds dictated by Saudi worries over Iran's increasing influence,” says leading columnist Abdallah Al-Senawi. “While Egypt will always stand by Gulf countries and Saudi Arabia against Iranian influence it was not ready to take part in what many Saudis were promoting as a Sunni coalition against Shia Iran.” Al-Senawi, like many Egyptian experts and columnists, has called for renewed dialogue between Egypt and Iran, arguing that this can be conducted without weakening relations with the oil-rich Gulf nations. The differences in the positions adopted by Cairo and Riyadh are thought to be behind the delay in implementing the joint Arab military force Al-Sisi proposed during the March Arab Summit in Sharm El-Sheikh. Informed diplomatic sources say the two countries did not see eye to eye on the composition of the force, where it would be based and how it would be financed. Other countries, including Algeria, Iraq and Oman, opposed the very concept and expressed fears the force would be used to intervene in the internal affairs of Arab countries. Now, following intense contacts between Egypt and Saudi over the past week and the release of the Cairo Declaration, the Arab League has announced that a joint meeting between Arab foreign and defence ministers will be held on 27 August to conclude an agreement on the joint Arab military force. The agreement will not become final unless it gains the approval of Arab leaders during the Arab Summit meeting next March. The signing of a nuclear deal between Iran and major world powers, led by the US, last month seems to have forced Saudi Arabia to reconsider ties with Cairo and seek to restore warmth to the relationship, says Mohamed Al-Zayat, a strategic expert and former intelligence officer. “The Egyptian leadership has always been keen to maintain a high level of cooperation with Saudi Arabia but also wanted to maintain independent positions on several issues,” argues Al-Zayat. “The most important result of the recent exchanges between Egypt and Saudi leaders, ending with the Cairo Declaration, is that it shows differences can be discussed within the parameters of a joint commitment to strategic ties.” Hussein Haridy, a former senior diplomat, sees the brief announcement in the Cairo Declaration that the two countries will work on delineating maritime borders as an important development. “Since 1991, following the war to liberate Kuwait, Saudi Arabia has been asking Egypt to mark the maritime border and restore Saudi control over several small islands overlooking the Gulf of Aqaba,” he said during a television talk show presented by Lilliane Dawoud on OnTV. The islands in question have been controlled by Egypt, with Saudi Arabia's agreement, since the 1967 war against Israel.
