Treaty unbound

How much of a constraint is the Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty on possible government action against Israel? Soha Abdelaty investigates
Egyptian-Israeli-American joy at signing the first Arab-Israeli peace treaty in 1979
The government has "cut off all communications with Israel, except for the diplomatic channels that serve the Palestinian cause."
But the people want more. Demonstrators want the Israeli Embassy shut. EgyptAir pilots want all flights to Tel Aviv suspended. And experts say Egypt can survive without Israeli agricultural advisors. Experts also say although the peace treaty between the two countries imposes obligations on Egypt and Israel, there is plenty of room for manoeuvre.
The Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty of 1979 is a murky document for most Egyptians. According to Ihab Wahba, former assistant foreign minister of for US affairs, there are some principles (known as contractual obligations) that cannot be violated. "There are very clear commitments," he told Al-Ahram Weekly. "Violation of these principles, infracts on the peace treaty as a whole" he said. Such obligations include the complete withdrawal from Sinai, the end of hostilities and the establishment of normal relations between the two states.
Comprehensive peace in the region as whole, as well as between Egypt and Israel lies at the core of the treaty. President Anwar El-Sadat's visit to Israel in 1977, was followed by the US-brokered Camp David Accords in 1978, in which the two countries not only committed themselves to bilateral peace, but to peace in the region, especially with respect to the provision of a just solution to the Palestinian problem. The Egyptian-Isreali peace treaty was signed in March 1979.
Wahba says, though, that the principles established by the Camp David accords were stipulated in the Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty and are therefore legally binding. "It's a whole package," Wahba. explained, "Israel's actions in the occupied territories are not in accordance with what it pledged in the peace treaty and in the Camp David Accords." Israel denies this.
While "peace" is very clearly defined in the treaty, "normal relations" is more ambiguous. Wahba, who was involved in the negotiations leading up to the peace treaty, opines that there are guiding principles for these relations dictated by the United Nations Charter.
One such principle is the respect for each other's sovereignty. Severing or freezing diplomatic relations with any country is a sovereign choice. According to Wahba, the withdrawal of diplomatic representation does not breach the concept of normal relations. On the other hand, "this is a matter of political consideration. It is not a matter of legal decision," Salah Amer, professor of public international law at Cairo University told the Weekly. "From the legal point of view, unless you have a stipulation saying that you are not allowed to cut the diplomatic relations, you can do whatever you want with regard to the diplomatic relations," he continued, adding that there was no such clause in the Egyptian- Israeli treaty.
The treaty does, however, clearly state that neither party should impose an economic boycott or prevent the free movement of people and goods between the two states. Violating this principle would automatically breach the treaty.
Furthermore, the UN Charter also clearly indicates that every state has the right to act in self-defence, either individually or collectively. "The peace treaty does not deprive you of self-defence, either individually or collectively," Wahba said. "Some people say that you cannot invoke the Joint Arab Defence Pact. This is a mistake. Self-defence is a natural right in the UN Charter." Practically, this means that Egypt can help defend an Arab country if it is attacked by anyone, including Israel without breaching the peace treaty.
Normal relations should also be conducted in "good faith." In addition, all the obligations of the treaty carry the same weight. "If Israel does not fulfil some of its obligations or conducts them in bad faith, this will rebound immediately on relations, for example," said Wahba.
Finally, there should be no preferential treatment between two states. Egypt and Israel should act towards each other, as they would with any other state. "If I decide at what point to show my grievances, or displeasure or disagreement, even with another Arab country, because of its actions, and I decided for example to withdraw my ambassador, this is what we call normal relations," Wahba clarified.
Despite these obligations, given the escalation of aggression against the Palestinian people by the Israeli government, the peace treaty does not state that Cairo should stand idle. Egypt can, act under the international legal principle of reciprocity. "If a state behaves against a stipulation in a treaty, the Vienna Convention of the Law of Treaties gives the offended party the right to freeze the text of the treaty by refusing to undertake its obligations until the other party resumes its obligations," Professor Amer explained. "You can, for example, decide to impose economic sanctions on Israel, as the European Union is contemplating, since Israel is a state in violation," Wahba suggested. Other less obvious measures are also possible. Amer suggested a de facto and unofficial boycott.
What is definite is that if Egypt does breach the peace treaty, it is not a signal of aggression. "We have to realise that modern International Law now forbids the act of war," Amer explained, "If we violate this treaty, we will return to a state of no-war no-peace. We will still be bound by general International Law to maintain normal relations with other countries, which are members of the United Nations. The difference is that there is no bilateral peace treaty," he concluded.
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