Ahmed Moustafa
Director of the Asia Center for Studies and Translation
First, Dedicating a few words of thanks:
First of all, I would like to thank the dear brother, friend, and experienced Russian diplomat, Mr. Alexey Tevanyan, Head of the Russian Commercial Representation Office in Cairo, for the precious confidence in my humble person, and for nominating me as a speaker from Egypt at the Kazan Economic Forum, Russia and the Islamic World, which was held in Kazan during the period May 18-19, 2023. – I hope I didn’t let him down.
Thanks also to the organizing committee of the conference, which invited me for the first time to attend this global forum, in which the total number of attendees, including organizers and guests, reached 16,000 people. I do not think that there is another forum in the world that can accommodate this huge number as an economic forum and a major world exhibition in this beautiful city of Kazan, the capital of Russian Tatarstan (it is truly a city within a garden).
I especially thank Ms. Aygul Nijmatullina for the attention, moment by moment, to my attendance at the forum since the initial invitation arrived, and then obtaining travel tickets, visa, and accommodation in one of the most luxurious hotels (Korston Royal), the residence of ministers and ambassadors in Kazan during the forum, as well as the most important point that was the press conference with the media Distinguished Kazan and friend / Alexey Blinov, who summarized the importance of my presentation and the summary of my proposition in English (economic cooperation between the Eurasian Economic Union and the D8 Islamic countries) for a quarter of an hour – and during the deep and good press questions, I adequately expressed the prospects and history of cooperation between Egypt and Russia and how it can be benefited from the strength of the relationship that extends for 80 years in economic and cultural affairs in an extensive way.
Whereas, my center – “Asia Center for Studies and Translation” is a startup that specializes in studies of Asian affairs and a partner with Al-Ahram Digital Gate in a project called “Eye on the Orient” which is based on interviewing experts and future studies of Asian countries and the region, especially Russia and China, of course – and I will attach The center’s portfolio with this report for review and study.
Timing and significance of the forum:
This global event coincided with two eastern summits par excellence – the first / the summit of China and Central Asian countries – and we see here a good division of roles between Russia and China to ensure stability along the Asian continent from the far east of China to the borders of Europe – and also to thwart any abnormal American ideas put forward by Blinken, the Secretary of State The American regarding the (Taiwanese issue) – for international organizations to accept Taiwan’s membership, even in the form of an observer, and accordingly, America lost to China recently in the World Health Organization in this proposition – and accordingly, it embarrassed other Western countries and did not comply with America. Because European ties with China cannot be sacrificed at the present time because they are 10 times more than the United States, and we previously said it was one billion euros per day, the volume of Sino-European trade exchanges, and this information is for those who are ignorant of international economic relations.
Secondly, the Jeddah Arab Summit, in the presence of the Syrian President, Mr. Bashar Al-Assad – and correcting an Arab course that lasted for about 12 years. Many thanks to the Russian and Chinese administrations for the great effort in this regard – in contrast to the West, especially the Democratic Party, which established ISIS according to the leaks of both the party and Hillary Clinton personally through WikiLeaks (as a reminder).
And the two summits represent a blow to the face of the West, especially America, and in response to the failure of the G7 Summit in Tokyo, and I do not know exactly who exactly are the seven powers. As long as Washington controls the other six countries and puts its shoes on the necks of the regimes of these Western countries and Japan – this was evident from the final statement of this G7 summit, which was widely criticized and ridiculed by the new powers, whether in (Russia, China, and Iran) as we hear on television, and it is not worth the value of ink who wrote it. Indeed, the Japanese ambassador in Beijing was summoned to blame and correct the inaccuracies contained in this report.
How to sustain trust between host country Russia and other countries:
Experts in this field unanimously agree that the existence of a strong and independent political will is the biggest motive for building strong relations between Russia and the countries of the Islamic world, especially since the world is already divided between America on one side and its followers in Europe ruled by Washington, and China and Russia on the other side of the world.
According to the Chinese proverb, “If you want to establish relations, you must build bridges.” Here, economic and cultural relations play a major role in building trust between Russia and the countries of the Islamic world. The participating delegations must be adequately and strongly prepared, not just to attend and show off, but for public relations and marketing, as well as potential agreements with companies of common interests that are not available in our country. Russia is advanced in several fields at a global level (agriculture, industry, iron and steel, information and communication technology, space, artificial intelligence, and satellites).
Likewise, we have a need for great cooperation in these areas. Indeed, there was one of the Russian speakers during the special session on Egyptian-Russian cooperation, who spoke about the new Russian zone in the Suez Canal axis and the investments that are made in it.
Egypt will also become the largest Russian gateway to Africa and North Africa in several areas. The region has great promising investment opportunities in the fields of communications, information technology, banking services, industrial intelligence, and even clean energy (in Rosatom, Gazprom, and Rosneft – you may be interested in the hot sands energy, as I know one of the most important Experts from the Arab world in it, and we are more than willing to cooperate) and that I talked about during my intervention as a speaker in the forum from Egypt.
Forum agreements aroused my interest:
The most important agreement held at the forum was the agreement (North-South Railway) between the Russian and Iranian sides, which connects the Russian northwest from St. Petersburg to the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas on the warm waters of the Gulf. It will also arrive at the port of Mumbai in India on the Indian Ocean.
This project, which is 7,200 km long, with investments amounting to about $20 billion between the two parties, where Egypt can have a role in it through infrastructure works, services, etc., and we do not believe that it will have a significant impact on the Suez Canal because the capacity of one of the giant ships is estimated at thousands of containers. This is why he could not transport several trains in a week, for example. Maritime and river transport still has the upper hand in large transport operations, then the railways, but it is an important trade corridor that connects the North with the South and has many advantages similar to the Meridian Corridor of the Silk Road.
This great project will create an important and large trade route and is another slap in the face of the West, and that there is a political will to strike Western sanctions to death and make them useless, and the West’s stupidity has succeeded in uniting countries that it sees as rogue states, from its arrogant point of view, such as Iran, Russia, and China This was not taken into account for them, as the penalties turned against those who imposed them.
And declaring the budget deficit in America, or the financial inability, unless (McCarthy), the president of Congress, agrees with (Biden) to raise the public debt ceiling before the beginning of next June is the biggest proof of what we say is that the West and the Western financial system led by the corrupt federal government are collapsing. Likewise, as we see, the spirit of sedition, mistrust, and division between the supporters of donkeys and elephants has begun to increase, and it is the greatest opportunity for the countries of the East and South now to do what they want.
Iran and Russia also concluded several important agreements in the field of artificial intelligence between the two countries at the level of the city of Shiraz and the city of Kazan through the “IT Park” group specialized in the field of artificial intelligence in Kazan. I had hoped that the Egyptian side would sign similar agreements with the Russian side in the same important fields that create jobs.
At the same time, it can benefit young people in the field of establishing start-up projects through new ideas that can be developed, invested in, and sold. It can employ many young people in each project, and we, as an Egyptian market, need 50,000 graduates and trainees in these fields, as big data is the engine of the age. One smart device can perform very large and dangerous statistics for producers. Accordingly, these devices are developed annually and made more easy and smooth to use.
Accordingly, my company – the Asia Center for Studies and Translation extends a hand of cooperation with the new partners in Russia, and perhaps together we can form what is called (a cooperation consortium) that serves the region, the countries of the Islamic world, and Africa in this new field, which is still promising and flourishing in the world of the south – in the year 2022 the investment arrived In emerging projects, to approximately $ 56 billion, and this figure is also lower than expected due to the Corona pandemic, and then the Ukrainian crisis.
Also, cooperation and investment in the field of media and its products and cultural products are very important because if we know that the market value of the Netflix platform fluctuates according to the latest statistics of the Nasdaq Stock Exchange between 150-160 billion dollars or any news platform such as Fox News about 15.5 billion dollars, which is a news platform.
These platforms have very great material importance, and they also have cultural importance. With the presence of Russian digital media platforms in the south, especially the Islamic world, Russia can easily erase all stereotypes with which it is stigmatized by the West, and it facilitates acquaintance with people among each other, and commercial exploitation, as well as it will need a lot of employees at the same time from different linguistic, cultural and informatics disciplines.
And for that, I would also like to thank each of the potential partners as follows:
Mr. Ruslan Vlasov – IT Park
Mr. Nour Akhmad – Edison Corp
Mr. Alireza Jafari – Eurasia Expo
Mr. Dmitry Yurievich – Study Case
Mr. Elyanov Boris – Eagle Energy
Mr. Akhmerov-Nelevich – Special Economic Zone of the Orenburg Region
Ms. Nadya Aglieva – Special Economic Zone of the Orenburg Region
Mr. Anton Efimov – Special Economic Zone of the Orenburg Region
Mr. Amur Gadzhiev – Modern Turkish Research Institute
Mr. Denis Alexeev – Innostage
Mr. Salim Al-Alawi – Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry
Mr. Kinan Aydin – USIAD
Mr. Fathodinov Timur – Oral Press Inform
Mr. Abdel Aziz Diop – Mayverso
Mrs. Lina Zoabi – Skolkova
Mr. Bashir Samaha – Union of Presidents of Russian-Arab Universities
Mr. Pavel Shepilov – Russian Export Center
Mr. Vitaly Nikeverov – FAI Rakapstroy
Mr. Alexey Blinov – RBC Tatarstan
Egyptian-Russian economic cooperation session:
Thanks to the organizing committee for this session. This session was held on the second day of the forum, corresponding to Friday, May 19, 2023. The day was filled with similar sessions between Russia and the rest of the Islamic world in parallel.
But what made the session less efficient than expected was the inclusion of people who were not from the beginning the speakers in the session, whether from the Egyptian or Russian sides, and I did not know who suggested this specifically. Because, on the other hand, it was necessary to increase the time allotted for the session to address the increase in the number of speakers on the main platform, as well as to provide the audience with the opportunity to interact with the speakers.
Also, I don’t know who rearranged the presentations of the speakers. On a personal level, I was supposed to be the third speaker, and this was according to the importance of the topics, and this was the arrangement of Mr. Alexie Tevanyan, the Head of the Russian Commercial Office in Cairo, and my presentation was prepared two weeks before the forum on a very important topic, which is about the Islamic world as an alternative to the West For the countries of the Eurasian Economic Union, and accordingly, it has taken the sector of the Islamic Group of Eight (Egypt, Nigeria, Turkey, Iran, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Malaysia, and Indonesia) as a sector representing the Islamic world and also characterized by having the eight largest markets in the Islamic world.
In addition, the moderation of economic sessions has a professional technique that we teach in presentation skills courses – within the so-called round table. Even if the time is limited, the (session moderator) had to get to know the speakers more and ask, for example, two or three questions in the light of a general view. And each speaker has two or three minutes at a time to answer it from his perspective, so that time is shared fairly and important topics are not harmed in the momentum of compliments to some personalities and become more dynamic.
As a result, only a number of two or three spoke on important issues and in the essence of the matter because it is an economic session, not a political one, or for speech only, while the rest of the majority, with all due respect, spoke about visions that could have been acceptable twenty years ago, and are not suitable for the new generation and their immediate economic problems.
And accordingly – I hope in the coming times that I will have the opportunity to (moderate economic sessions in the forum and in more than one language) and also we can cooperate with presenters from Russia and the Islamic world, in conducting a workshop through Kazan University, the School of Mass Communication there, to develop presentation skills in this regard to be closer to what we see in Davos or Doha, as well as in St. Petersburg when I was watching the interesting dialogues between President Putin and the American presenter (Megan) from CNBC.
Previously, I had carried out a joint simulation project for the Russian presidential elections with the School of Political Science at Cairo University in 2018 in cooperation with Dr. Nourhan Al-Sheikh – with the round table system, and I was the one who moderated this debate successfully, and indeed I was distributing questions equally among the candidates, including those who represent “President Putin”. So that each speaker gets an equal share of the time available, and there is already time for post-debate audience participation.
And among the media interviews that I liked – was the project of the Russian agency TASS “20 Questions Addressed to President Putin” because it was wonderfully prepared in everything.
Suggestions and notes:
1- Indeed, the world has been divided into two promising eastern camps that are progressing very quickly and are ready to cooperate and unite with each other, and a western that is falling and receding. The advantage of this time is that the countries of the East and the South have more playing cards than are available to the West, especially in the fields of energy, information technology, and space. The new forces in the east and south have a chance to gain their economic independence in the event that there is political will and collective action against the West. Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea were not among the countries that responded to the West with counter-slaps, as we have been following over the past years – rather, I remember what (Prince / Mohammad bin Salman) did in 2018 specifically when (Justin Trudeau), the President of Canada, this “low-profile Clown” as alleged by Canadian experts, to interfere in Saudi affairs and the issue of freedoms in the Kingdom. Thus Prince Mohammed bin Salman taught him a lesson that he would not forget at the time, and it almost cut off Saudi-Canadian relations, and the Canadian ambassador was expelled and all Canadian projects in the Kingdom were canceled. And what the President of the Congo did during the visit of French President Macron a few months ago, the presidency of Burkina Faso, as well as the President of Zimbabwe when the German ambassador attempted to interfere in internal affairs as well as in Chinese cooperation with Zimbabwe, where the Zimbabwean President replied, “The Chinese are there to implement projects because they are a serious people, They are not for the purpose of leisure tourism, like you Westerners, and they do not impose specific agendas on us.”
2- What I suggested during my meeting with Russia Today International, as well as the director of the commercial office in Egypt, Mr. Tevanyan, is that I become an “Honorary Ambassador” of the Kazan Economic Forum in Egypt and the region. Given the relations I enjoy in this regard and also my previous experience with the “Group of Strategic Vision Group – Russia and the Islamic World – Journalists Against Extremism” since 2015 and dealing with the group in the project of translating the Yevgeny Primakov award-winning book in 2018 authored by Dr. Suhail Farah under the title “Russian Civilization: Meaning and Destiny” into English. In addition to my participation in developing a special proposal to increase cooperation between the city of Kazan and Alexandria, my city, in 2019. Further, my participation in two consecutive times in the Eurasian Marathon in 2017 and 2019, once on (environmental development and sustainability in the Eurasian group of countries) and the other on (preserving the cultural heritage) of the same group.
3- Until now, the actual participation in this forum is lacking for recent graduates from Russian universities, especially in postgraduate studies (Masters and PhDs) over the past ten years, and who have already obtained scientific degrees through scientific dissertations to enhance cooperation between their countries of origin and Russia, both in the fields of Applied and natural sciences, as well as human sciences, especially economic ones, and these are certainly still in the stage of enthusiasm and love for cooperation with the Russian side and creating opportunities for cooperation for them and their peers in the same fields, and they can indeed become ambassadors of Russia in their countries of origin if they are already enabled to attend the activities of the forum and events Similar – for example, I personally have a master’s degree in Russian studies and political economy from the “Higher School of Economics in Moscow” and my dissertation anticipated the problem with the West in Ukraine due to the growing Russian role in the world, which was titled (New World Order: China, Germany and Russia), which Unfortunately, it is sold on the Amazon platform, and I wished it would be sold on a Russian platform, if any, because it is issued by a Russian state university.
4- I reaffirm once again the Russian investment in the media field with the countries of the Islamic world and the south, and the launch of a joint search engine that can bring together all of “Russia, China, the countries of the Islamic world, the south and the east in general” is a great opportunity for investment. For example, establishing a microchip factory with China, especially after China imposed a ban on the American company “Micron”, and benefiting from exchanging experiences in this field with the Chinese side, which will enable Russia and the countries of the Islamic world to compete in the software market.
5- That the forum hold as soon as possible a symposium, even online, on an important financial and monetary issue under the title “Getting out of the control of the dollar and how to circumvent Western sanctions and make them useless”, and we also have many alternative solutions to the payments crisis between Russia and the Islamic world, so it can be created. For example, a unified digital currency is accepted between the two sides, as well as currency exchange platforms, or the use of gold, yuan, or barter systems.
6- The clothing and fashion industry is also one of the most areas that can attract young people between Russia and the Islamic world due to the ethnic diversity in these countries. A lot of fashions can be generated in clothing, jewelry, and accessories, which can be marketed on electronic platforms stemming from the Kazan Economic Forum as emerging projects.
7- The work of the Innopolis University for Artificial Intelligence in Kazan reminded me of the work of Nile University, which was able, through financing from the Central Bank of Egypt in 2017 at a value of (100 million EGP), to convert it in less than five years to (1 billion EGP) as revenue and to establish about 200 projects Emerging in several fields based on big data, artificial intelligence, and information technology. Please note that the Egyptian market needs about 50,000 graduates and trainees annually from these fields, and it is an invitation to universities and centers specialized in big data, artificial intelligence, and information technology in Kazan and Russia to cooperate with their Egyptian counterparts in this regard. in this field strongly and profitably.
8- With regard to the economy of culture, just as the Egyptian actress Naima Akef was crowned at the Grand Theater (Bolshoi) in Moscow with the title of the best dancer in the world through the performance of (The Mamlouk) that she presented at the International Youth Festival in 1957 – I wish to see the performance (Coco Chanel, the Arabic version) of the Egyptian artist (Sherihan) on the same stage. I also hope to see, the other hand, at the Egyptian Opera Theater and Bibliotheca Alexandrina the recent two Russian musical performances (Anna Karenina and Shakhmata “Chess”) as soon as possible. Here are the cultural platforms that can be created between the two sides that can do a lot and perhaps a large joint Egyptian-Russian theater and cinematic production.
And in the end – my review of this forum with confidence (excellence), which we hope will continue and grow more than that by addressing some of the points I mentioned above as an eyewitness and also as a lover of Russia in general and Kazan, this beautiful city in particular.
* The writer:
Egyptian Economist and International Youth Coach
Director of Asia Center for Studies and Translation
Asia Center for Studies and Translation – Directed by Ahmed Moustafa (wordpress.com)
Master Holder in Political Economy 2021, HSE Moscow
Member of CODESRIA, Dakar, Senegal and Group of Strategic Vision
Russia and Islamic World, Journalists Against Extremism
Cellphone: +201009229411
Email: solimon2244@yahoo.com
ahmedmoustafa830@gmail.com
