Egypt should keep to Camp David and its peace accord with Israel, opines Mohamed Bassiouni* By 1972 efforts to find a political solution in the Middle East had ground to a halt. President Nixon told the US State Department to freeze any movement or initiative concerning the Middle East and granted Israel's request for more warplanes. In a memorandum to Israel, the US pledged to refrain from proposing any new political initiative in the Middle East without prior consultation with Israel. As a result, the US policy became hostage to Israel's wishes. Under such circumstances, the 1973 War was inevitable. Following its victory in 1973, Egypt started seeking peace. In November 1977, President Anwar El-Sadat went to Jerusalem and addressed the Knesset. "I haven't come to Jerusalem for a unilateral peace between Egypt and Israel. I came for the sake of achieving an overall, lasting, and just peace, especially with regard to the Palestinian problem, which is at the heart of the Arab-Israeli conflict." On 17 September 1978, President El-Sadat, Prime Minister Menachem Begin and President Jimmy Carter agreed in Camp David on a framework for peace in the Middle East, noting that the basis for any peace arrangements is UN Security Council Resolution 242. The Camp David talks generated two documents. The first offers the basis for a peace treaty between Egypt and Israel, which later materialised. The second suggests ways of resolving the Palestinian problem in the West Bank and Gaza. On 26 March 1979, El-Sadat and Begin signed the Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty at a ceremony in Washington attended by Jimmy Carter. The treaty ended the state of war between the two sides and arranged for Israeli armed forces and civilians (settlers) to withdraw to the Israeli side of the borders as defined by the British mandate. Does the treaty compromise Egypt's national security or hinder its ability to fulfil its Arab and regional commitments? Many have been asking of late. I have participated in many discussions on that issue which is obviously one of public concern. When Israel attacked Lebanon, many people called for the treated to be abrogated, frozen, amended, or generally reconsidered. Some people even noted that parts of the treaty haven't been put into effect, especially with regard to financial compensations, so allow me to clarify a few relevant points. First, the Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty doesn't give Israel special status of any kind. Israel is a neighbouring country to Egypt -- one among many. The treaty places certain commitments on Israel, including the need to settle any problems through peaceful means. Second, the treaty doesn't diminish the sovereignty of Egypt or its ability to act according to its national and pan-Arab interests. All the treaty does is turn the relations between Egypt and Israel into something similar to what exists between any two neighbouring countries. This means that either country is entitled to act as it wishes so long as it stays within the boundaries of law. Third, the Arab joint defence agreement is binding on Egypt and the peace treaty doesn't abrogate earlier commitments. There is a provision in the peace treaty that has caused much controversy. Article 6 mentions in part that the commitments emanating from the peace treaty supersede earlier commitments. This provision is based on the UN Charter, which explicitly states the right of various countries for individual and collective self- defence. The activation and enforcement of the Arab joint defence agreement would have required Lebanon to ask Arab countries to activate that treaty, which didn't happen. Let me remind you that the Arab joint defence treaty is officially called The Agreement of Joint Arab Defence and Economic Cooperation. The institutions of Arab military relations (i.e. the Joint Defence Council and the Standing Military Committee) haven't been activated so far. The agreement also calls on signatory countries to cooperate in economic matters and in the development of natural resources. Fourth, the peace treaty has brought substantial gains to Egypt, including a full Israeli withdrawal from Sinai, the return of oil fields, the reopening and operation of the Suez Canal, and the launching of numerous development efforts. A majority of Egyptians still believe that the abrogation of the peace treaty or its suspension is out of the question. It is therefore important to remain committed to the letter and spirit of that treaty. * The writer is former Egyptian ambassador to Israel.
