Prof. Zeynep Oktav writes
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan visited Egypt last week after 11 years. The two leaders declared that they had opened a new page in the relations between the two countries.
* A historic visit!
This visit is very important as the humanitarian crisis emerged as a result of the surprising raid of Hamas on October 7, 2023, and Israel’s attacks on civilians, continue. It was a historic visit that could offer an opportunity for cooperation to establish regional security in an atmosphere where the war risks expanding to include Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and the Red Sea, with the involvement of both regional and global actors.Considering their significant military capacities, cooperation between the two countries could be decisive in maintaining regional balance.
‘Israel’s increasing threat!
The following about why Turkey and Misir started on the path of normalization a long time ago and it’s badly needed now to accelerate the relationship:
* Ben Gurion Canal!
“Of course, the economy is at the forefront of the new page opened by the two countries, because the Egyptian economy turned negative very quickly. And Israel has some plans that could further negatively affect Egypt’s economy. At the beginning of this, the plan to build the Ben Gurion Canal, an alternative to the Suez Canal. This plan is supported by the USA and the EU, which increases Egypt’s threat perception to a higher level. If we consider other reasons like this, it is obvious that Egypt’s relations with Israel are not and will not be as positive as they used to be. Especially with the October 7 Gaza disaster, Israel became even more threatening to Egypt. That’s why Sisi wanted to host Erdogan. As a result, one economy and two Gaza issues are important topics on the agenda of the two countries.”
* Brother countries!
Emphasizing that the most important and urgent problem facing the two countries is the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, this situation brings the two countries closer to each other: “The fact that Egypt and Turkey acted in very close cooperation on the Gaza issue shows that the two countries are brother countries.” revealed more. Turkey’s aid to the Palestinian people with purely humanitarian and brotherly ties, without expecting anything in return, and being right next to Egypt, brought Turkey closer to Egypt. As for the steps that can be taken, both countries have taken many initiatives in the diplomatic field regarding the ceasefire. Egypt was under both material and moral pressure, especially regarding the Palestinian refugees piled up at the Rafah gate and the innocent civilians who were forced to be pushed into the Sinai desert. “At this stage, the country that gave him the most support was Türkiye.”
* No choice!
Oktav said, “One calamity is better than a thousand advices,” and added that the humanitarian tragedy in Gaza created a situation from which great lessons should be learned for the two countries. Giving the example of Libya, Oktav continued her words as follows: “The fact that Turkey and Egypt were in opposing camps in Libya had the most negative impact on Egypt’s interests. While the Egyptian Foreign Minister openly said ‘Egypt’s rights are being defeated’ regarding maritime jurisdiction areas, unfortunately Egypt had to bow to Israel and the USA. But now, at this point, Egypt no longer has the luxury of projecting power in either Libya or Sudan and must prioritize its own interests. In this context, Egypt has no choice but to cooperate and be at peace with Turkey.”
* Military balances!
Turkey decided to supply unmanned aerial vehicles to Egypt and commented, “If this continues, the military balances in the Mediterranean will change a lot.”
