This week's visit of Saudi King Salman bin Abdul-Aziz to Cairo clearly emphasises the strength of the brotherly relations between Egypt and Saudi Arabia. It sends a message that both countries need to work together to achieve maximum benefit in the interests of their peoples over the coming years. Salman's visit has been well received by the Egyptian authorities, with the Egyptian cabinet expressing its deep appreciation of what it called a historic visit that aimed at entrenching and consolidating relations between the two countries. The cabinet referred to King Salman as a “very special guest”. King Salman is expected to discuss with president Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi many persisting Arab issues, including the situation in war-torn Syria and Libya and the need to cooperate in fighting terrorism, which has been gaining momentum over the past few years especially in the Middle East. The leaders will explore ways to reinforce Arab unity in the context of regional developments. The discussion is likely to give a tremendous boost to the political front of Arab efforts to restore peace and stability in the region. The meeting of the leaders of the largest and most influential Arab powers implies that the peoples of the region have the will to work on fixing their own problems without foreign interference and that the region will never be an exporter of violence or terrorism. But Salman's visit to Cairo is also significant in terms of its timing. Not only does it respond to irresponsible reports that relations between the two countries are witnessing a period of stagnation after close cooperation between them during the rule of former Saudi King Abdullah, but it also confirms that historic relationships cannot be easily broken. The visit consolidates further the need to cooperate to serve the national interests of each country in the interests of the Arab region as a whole. The visit comes amid stormy problems experienced by the Arab region and threats that the region has not been exposed to since a very long time ago. The first of these threats is the danger of terrorism, which has swept almost all over the region and has become a serious concern for Arab governments and peoples. There is no doubt that the meeting between King Salman and President Al-Sisi will support a mutual vision emphasising the need to combat terrorism and the determination to root out its causes. Fighting terrorism: The Egyptian-Saudi understanding to counter terrorism encourages Arab solidarity towards the major Arab national security challenges. What is currently taking place in Syria and the escalation of terrorism threats from extremist groups have hindered political solutions and made negotiations to explore a political horizon that serves stability interests even more difficult. Libya is no exception to this. Despite the signing of an UN-sponsored peace deal recently and the formation of a new national unity government in Libya last week, the authorities are facing increased challenges from Islamic State (IS) and other terrorist groups, four years after the ex-dictator Muammar Gaddafi was toppled. In recent weeks, IS fighters in Libya have launched attacks against the country's main oil facilities. Egypt and Saudi Arabia's joint work to counter terrorism threats has developed from just exchanging intelligence information and coordinating policy to reaching a higher level marked by military cooperation under the recently established Islamic Military Coalition that emerged from a Saudi initiative to meet the challenges and terrorist risks facing Arab countries including Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Libya as well as Egypt's Sinai. The militaries of both countries have demonstrated extensive cooperation in Yemen, where Cairo has participated in the Saudi-led war against the Houthi rebels. Recently, both the Egyptian and the Saudi armies, among 20 Islamic forces, participated in one of the biggest military maneuvers ever in the Middle East, named Raad Al-Shamal (Thunder of the North) in Riyadh. The work to strengthen military cooperation gained momentum in July last year when Egypt and Saudi Arabia signed a pact in Cairo aimed at boosting military and economic ties between the two allies. The Cairo Declaration also pledged to enhance cooperation and investment in the energy and transport sectors. Giving the lie to some media reports that mostly stem from the Muslim Brotherhood and other Islamist groups, King Salman has shown his keenness to accelerate measures to revive the ailing Egyptian economy. Through massive financial assistance, he has opened up new prospects for mutual cooperation in investment areas. A few weeks after he took the throne after the death of his brother King Abdullah, King Salman described Saudi Arabia's stance towards Egypt as “unchangeable”, pointing out that relations between the two countries were too strong to be damaged. Economic ties: On the economic front, the rapprochement is even clearer. Saudi Arabia is one of the main supporters of Al-Sisi's government, and it has supported Cairo with billions of dollars in aid, grants and cash deposits since the 30 June 2013 popular uprising, helping to support the country's economy after years of political and economic upheaval. The two countries have recently established the Egyptian-Saudi Coordination Council to strengthen economic ties. Since mid-2013, the number of Egyptian workers in Saudi Arabia has increased by about half a million. Egyptian companies have been provided with major opportunities to invest in the Saudi market. King Salman also supported the Egyptian economy with an additional $4 billion during the Sharm El-Sheikh Egypt Economic Development Conference (EEDC) which was held in March last year. The Egyptian-Saudi Coordination Council has approved an agreement under which Saudi Arabia will meet Egyptian needs for oil products for five years. The Saudi Development Fund also extended a $1.5 billion loan to Egypt a few days ago to finance development projects in Sinai carried out by Egypt's Armed Forces. The funds aim to accelerate development projects and to provide job opportunities for local communities in an attempt to eliminate extremism and terrorism. The projects in Sinai include the North Sinai development axis highway, four secondary roads, agricultural agglomerations, and 26 residential projects including houses, medical units, and schools. Egypt and Saudi Arabia also signed a memorandum of understanding recently to encourage Saudi investments in Egypt in an agreement between the Saudi Public Investments Fund and the Egyptian investment ministry. In mid-December last year, Saudi Arabia pledged to pump an additional SAR 30 billion ($8 billion) into several investments in Egypt and said it would meet the country's need for oil for the next five years. In January this year, the Saudi government said it would extend LE1.57 billion in grants to Egypt to help finance small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Some LE250 million of the sum will be allocated to supporting SME projects in the Sinai governorate, while the remaining LE1.32 billion will be distributed in governorates with high unemployment rates. The grant will be disbursed to investors as loans through the Central Bank of Egypt's recently implemented regulations. Following the deadly Russian plane crash over Egypt's Red Sea coast and the loss of billions of dollars as a result of the UK and Russia decisions to suspend flights to the area, the Saudi authorities moved to encourage local companies to support the troubled tourism sector in Egypt. Saudi shipments were also given instructions to support traffic in the Suez Canal. King Salman's support: King Salman's contributions to Egypt cannot be underestimated. Historically, his personal role in volunteering to repel the 1956 Tripartite Aggression against Egypt and his support during the military operations is much appreciated by Egyptians. He also headed a committee to collect donations for the victims of the War in Suez, Ismailia and Port Said. Salman's support for Egypt continued during the 1973 War, when he provided assistance to Egyptian troops on the frontlines. When he was governor of Riyadh, he created a special relief committee to provide financial assistance to needy people in Egypt after the major earthquake that hit the country in the early 1990s. And this support has continued to the present day. To many Egyptians, Saudi Arabia has proved to be a real friend on whom they can depend at all times. Responding to King Salman's support, the Egyptian authorities decided to build the new Sixth October City carrying the king's name. The City is built on 42,000 square feet of land. The South Sinai province has also announced the establishment of a large university called the King Salman bin Abdul-Aziz University. In mid-January last year, the Egyptian cabinet approved funding for a power-linkage project with Saudi Arabia that is expected to cost $1.6 billion. The project, initially approved in 2014 and expected to end in 2017, enables the two countries to share 3,000 MW of electricity in peak hours. Egypt's funding share is estimated at $700 million. The common grid project involves the construction of 1,250 km of power cables linking Medina in Saudi Arabia with Cairo in Egypt. Moreover, the strong political and economic relations between Egypt and Saudi Arabia are reflected in attitudes and actions and not just words. More such actions can be expected to be taken to the benefit of both countries during King Salman's visit to Cairo. A relationship in facts and figures 100 billion Saudi riyals ($26.7 billion): the total value of Saudi investments in Egypt 30 billion riyals in additional assistance ordered by King Salman to support investments in Egypt Two million Egyptian workers currently in Saudi Arabia, or nearly 40 per cent of the total expatriate workforce $3.673 billion: The volume of trade between the two countries in the fourth quarter of 2015 $2.195 billion: Saudi exports to Egypt $1.478 billion: Egyptian exports to Saudi Arabia 15 per cent: The percentage of Saudi private investments in Egypt out of all investment in the country 20 per cent: The percentage of power saved from the power link project between the two countries 80 per cent: The percentage of solved problems facing Saudi investors in Egypt 42,000 square feet allocated to build the new King Salman City in Egypt 2016: The year the power link project between the two countries should be finished Five years of Saudi Arabia covering oil needs for Egypt Egypt's exports to Saudi Arabia include household appliances, cables, furniture, fruit and vegetables and cheese Egypt's imports from Saudi Arabia include petroleum products, petrochemicals, paper products, drugs, colours and dyes and steel coils $4 billion: The amount of Saudi aid to Egypt during the Sharm El-Sheikh Economic Development Conference in March 2015, including $2 billion in support of Egypt's foreign exchange reserves and another $2 billion for development projects. 53.1 per cent: Percentage growth of Saudi tourists visiting Egypt in summer 2015 The writer is a political researcher based in Jeddah in Saudi Arabia.
