The secretary-general of the Egyptian-Iranian Friendship Association tells Dina Ezzat that the time is now for Cairo and Tehran to resume full diplomatic relations Assessments of the recent round of talks between senior Egyptian and Iranian officials have been generally positive on both sides. Egyptian officials say that their Iranian counterparts demonstrated sufficient good faith regarding the reinvigoration of bilateral relations severed since 1979 in the wake of the Iranian revolution. For their part, Iranian officials appear to appreciate the positive reception they were accorded in Cairo during talks that took place in early September between Assistant Foreign Minister Abbas Irakachi and three counterparts from Egypt's side. For Mohamed Sadik Al-Husseini, secretary- general of the Egyptian-Iranian Friendship Association, this positive start ought to be built upon. "Given the regional dynamics at stake, now is the time to move beyond the exchange of diplomatic niceties. Now is really the time to resume full diplomatic relations between Egypt and Iran," Al-Husseini told Al-Ahram Weekly. For several years, through his Tehran-based NGO, Al-Husseini has been working to end what he qualifies as the "inexplicably extended grey cloud that has haunted bilateral Egyptian-Iranian relations". Al-Husseini's main mission is to encourage officials and civil society on both sides to come to terms with the fact that "no matter what the differences between these two influential and important countries, neither can afford this much- prolonged suspension of full diplomatic relations." According to Al-Husseini, differences between Egypt and Iran are containable: "Egypt and Iran might disagree on the methods and the style, for example, by which the Lebanese people should defend themselves against the hostilities of Israel, but they certainly agree that the Lebanese have the right of defence against all forms of Israeli aggression. They might disagree on ways to restore stability to Iraq and whether or not the [current Iraqi] government is best placed to handle this task, but they share the same concern over the current state of chaos in Iraq. They might also be more supportive of one Palestinian faction or the other, but they both worry for the fate of the Palestinian cause." For Al-Husseini, in view of the current escalation of turmoil across the Middle East, especially in spots of direct interest to either country, both Egypt and Iran have to realise that it is in their joint interest as much as it is in the interest of the region in general that they "immediately work on resuming full diplomatic relations." The recent round of Egyptian-Iranian talks is "good and encouraging", according to Al-Husseini, but "there are yet no clear indications that this first step will be followed by more constructive and positive moves" that could lead to the full resumption of diplomatic relations between Egypt and Iran. "During the meetings that took place [in September] in Cairo, both the Iranian and Egyptian delegations agreed to set up a joint committee [of security officials] to address common concerns on both sides," Al-Husseini told the Weekly. Security has been, and remains, a key concern. In 2005, former president Mohamed Khatami and President Hosni Mubarak met in Geneva on the fringe of the World Economic Forum and decided to give the go-ahead for a resumption of relations. Momentum was interrupted by security concerns, mainly on the Egyptian side. For Al-Husseini, if Cairo and Tehran condition the resumption of relations on the success of a joint committee in resolving all outstanding issues the objective of reinstituting full diplomatic ties will fail. "We can address some of the obvious concerns, resume full diplomatic relations and then work together in good faith to narrow our differences and solidify our relations," he said. "This is if we are really serious about shaking up the generally frozen relations between our two countries as the Cairo meetings had aimed to," he added. The beginning of the rift between Cairo and Tehran can be dated to when former president Anwar El-Sadat accorded refuge to the toppled shah of Iran. Leaders of the 1979 Iranian revolution considered this a hostile act. Sadat was already regarded as suspect due to his 1978 peace deal with Israel. Four years later, it was a group of Islamist militants supported by Iran that assassinated Sadat. A main Tehran road has since then been given the name of Khaled Al-Islamboli, one of the Sadat assassins. Tensions between Egypt and Tehran continued to escalate after 1982, especially in relation to two main issues: settlement of the Arab-Israeli conflict and the fast paced advancement of US involvement in regional affairs. Today, these differences are far from resolved. And unlike the days of former Iranian President Khatami, chemistry is not particularly strong between Cairo and Tehran under the leadership of President Ahmadinejad. Indeed, Egypt is now a member of an informal diplomatic gathering dubbed "6+2+1" which, formed one year ago, brings the US together with Egypt, Jordan and the six member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council with the aim of monitoring and containing Iranian influence in the Middle East. Despite its opposition to any possible US military attack against Iranian nuclear installations, Egypt has made no secret of its dissatisfaction with the foreign policy style adopted by Tehran. Specifically, Egypt has vocally criticised Iran's interference in Iraq, Lebanon and Palestine. Nonetheless, for Al-Husseini, despite these crucial points of disagreement, "which are likely to persist even if full diplomatic relations were re- instituted", it is vital that Egypt and Iran "come closer". "Egypt and Iran are very influential countries. If Egypt and Iran were to work together to address hotspots of contention in the Arab-Muslim region, then much can be done," Al-Husseini said. "It is only in the interest of the US and Israel to keep Egypt and Iran apart because these two countries know that the resumption of cooperation between Egypt and Iran could help address [regional] problems and consequently reduce the space of foreign intervention or influence," he added. "Our region is now confronted with unprecedented challenges. These challenges are not at all about the expansion of Iranian influence as some Western quarters attempt to suggest. These are challenges set by foreign intervention and influence that has been profiting from splits in Arab and Muslim ranks and that is currently working to divide Arab and Muslim countries into small entities as we see in the case of Iraq. If Egypt and Iran cannot stand up to these challenges then the region is going to go through a very difficult time," Al-Husseini argued. For Al-Husseini, the specific coordination of Egypt and Iran could properly address the issues of nuclear proliferation and the peaceful uses of nuclear energy in the Middle East. Both countries have for three decades been promoting the Middle East a zone free of all weapons of mass destruction. While Egypt is not fully confident that Iran's current nuclear programme is not ultimately tailored to produce a nuclear bomb, it stands firmly against any war on Iran to eliminate its nuclear capacities. Further, like Iran, Egypt rejects Israel's refusal to join the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Israel is the only state in the region that has nuclear installations that go unchecked by the International Atomic Energy Agency. It is this level of corresponding strategic interests, for Al-Husseini, that should set the pace for future Egyptian-Iranian relations. Earlier this year, Ahmadinejad made public statements promoting the prompt resumption of relations with Egypt. Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul-Gheit at the time was cautious but welcoming in his reaction. He sent a letter to his Iranian counterpart insisting that any resumption of relations between Egypt and Iran would have to be based on solid grounds. Abul-Gheit's letter suggested that the removal of the Sadat assassin's name from the road in Tehran and the elimination of financial and any other forms of Iranian support for Egyptian Islamist militant groups are basic conditions for any diplomatic progress. During talks that took place in Cairo in September the same demands were made. "Officials on both sides can work out the details, but our main focus should be the big picture: a region in turmoil," Al-Husseini stressed. In press statements he made this week, Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul-Gheit indicated a shared awareness of the political hiccups ahead of the region. Excluding any imminent US attack on Iran, Abul-Gheit was still careful to affirm that when it comes to the current "confrontation between Iran and the West", Egypt is taking a clear position: Cairo supports the right of Iran, as that of every developing country, to acquire nuclear technology for peaceful uses in accordance with terms stipulated in the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty to which both Egypt and Iran are members. Moreover, Cairo is opposed to any military action against Iran and is warning in no uncertain terms of the region-wide repercussions of any military attack on Iran. Meanwhile, according to Abul-Gheit, Egypt is not being at all apprehensive about the role that Iran is currently assuming in the region, provided that Iran is not using its regional role in relation to Arab affairs -- especially in Lebanon and Iraq -- as a bargaining chip in its confrontation with the West. Abul-Gheit keenly denied any accusations attributed to him regarding Egyptian apprehension over attempted "Iranian hegemony." The foreign minister insisted that Egypt does not perceive Tehran as a threat but rather as an important Muslim state with a role to serve the best interests of the stability of the region. Egypt, he said, is willing to duly consider this Iranian contribution provided that Iran is reciprocating. This said, Abul-Gheit offered no signs of a near- future resumption of full diplomatic ties with Iran. Rather the opposite, the top Egyptian diplomat reacted with caution to questions on the matter. According to Abul-Gheit, both Cairo and Tehran still have considerable work to do before the road is fully paved towards the resumption of diplomatic relations between the two regional powers.
