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Mohamed Morsi, newly elected Egyptian President, launched an extensive diplomatic campaign shortly after taking office in June. Following trips to Saudi Arabia and Ethiopia, he visited China in late August before flying to Iran. He is also scheduled to pay a visit to the United States in September. These overseas trips reflect the Morsi administration’s diplomatic strategy, which is to realize Egypt’s maximized interests by imple- menting a balanced diplomatic policy.
Continuing traditional ties
Morsi kicked off his trip to China on August 28, in the president’s first trip outside Africa and the Middle East. Observers noted that Morsi’s choice underscored the value Egypt places on its relationship with China, especially as it looks to promote an economic recovery. At the same time, building a strong relationship with Egypt will put China in a better position to get involved in the peace process in the Middle East.
Morsi came to China with a host of political, economic and diplomatic tasks.
Politically, he hoped to follow Egypt’s tradition of friendship with China. Egypt set up diplomatic relations with China in 1956, and was the first country in the Middle East and Africa to do so. In 1999, Egypt built a strategic cooperative relationship with China—another first in the region. When speaking with Chinese President Hu Jintao, Morsi said Egypt will maintain high-level exchanges with China and promote links between governments and political parties.
Another important reason Morsi came to China was his country’s current economic troubles. Now that Egypt, a long-time leader in the Arab world, has risen out of last year’s bloody social unrest, the most pressing challenge for Morsi and his government is to revive the country’s stagnant economy.
“Everything is undone now in Egypt. But Morsi’s top challenge is still the country’s economic recovery,” said He Wenping, a senior research fellow with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS). She pointed out that Egypt’s economy has slowed due to social instability in the past year. The country’s tourism sector is far from reviving, and the unemployment rate is more than 20 percent.
He Wenping pointed out that the latest statistics showed that about 40 percent of Egyptian people are living below the poverty line. To keep prices under control, the Egyptian Government has adopted a subsidy policy, causing a huge budget deficit. “Egypt now needs international development assistance and foreign investment,” she said.“Trade between China and Egypt hasn’t been influenced very much by the turmoil in the Middle East, so Egypt hopes to enlarge its exports to China while attracting investment from China.” Bilateral trade rose to $8.8 bil-lion last year, up nearly 30 percent year on year.
The visiting president also said Egypt hopes to expand its political cooperation with China as well as economic cooperation in areas such as manufacturing, agriculture, fishery, finance, electronics, communications and transportation infrastructure. Morsi was accompanied by a group of Egyptian business leaders on his trip to China, and the two countries signed a series of cooperation agreements.
Morsi invited Chinese companies to invest in Egypt and vowed to create a safe and stable environment for the enterprises. He called on the two countries to promote exchanges in civil aviation, tourism, education and technology. Egypt expects China to increase its total investment in Egypt from the current $500 million to $2 billion in three years.
Another target of Morsi’s trip was to strengthen communication with China in terms of the regional situation. Qu Xing, President of the China Institute of International Studies(CIIS), said the turmoil in the past year has weakened Egypt’s reigning influence in the Arab world. To inspire Egypt’s all-around revival, Morsi must regain the country’s decisive position on regional hotspot issues, such as the Syria issue. “Egypt can further communicate with China on Middle East developments, and it can also form a solid basis for expanded cooperation with China,” said Qu, stressing China’s opportunity to play a constructive role in the region.
While meeting President Hu, Morsi said Egypt appreciates and respects China’s position on major international and regional issues. He said Egypt is ready to strengthen communication and coordination with China and cope with challenges through joint efforts. He also promised that Egypt will play a positive role in the development of Sino-Arab relations and Sino-African relations.
Rebalancing foreign policy
Morsi’s trip schedule revealed his new diplomatic strategy of conducting a pluralistic diplomacy based on the principle of balance. Chinese observers pointed out that the Morsi administration intends to keep a distance from the United States in order to relieve do- mestic pressure. In addition, Morsi’s Tehran visit showed Cairo’s stance on conducting a normal diplomatic relationship with Iran, suggesting the two countries’ relationship will not see a dramatic improvement.
He Wenping from the CASS said it is not rational to judge Morsi’s diplomatic policy from only one trip, but she stressed that Egypt is certain to maintain a pluralistic diplomatic strategy rather than simply following U.S. commands.
Egypt doesn’t want to be tied up with the West, particularly the Middle East wars launched by the United States. In the Hosni Mubarak era, Egypt had maintained an extremely close relationship with the United States, which was one of the points raising Egyptian people’s objections. Morsi’s new government wants to show that it is different from the Mubarak administration, so Egypt will no longer be Washington’s attendant. Besides, He Wenping pointed out that Morsi hopes to see a pluralistic and balanced situation in the Middle East.
Wang Suolao, a professor with Peking University, stressed that the core of Morsi’s diplomatic policy is that Egypt must make decisions based on its own interests instead of playing up to U.S. interests. Wang noted that Morsi must find a way to keep a distance between Egypt’s diplomatic independence and U.S. aid. The United States provides at least $2 billion in assistance to Egypt, about $1.4 billion for military aid and the rest for economic help.
Wang said Morsi will not give up such a huge amount of assistance, because the country is facing economic difficulties. Moreover, if the country’s military relationship with the United States doesn’t go over well, Morsi will face pressure from the military circle.
Dong Manyuan, Vice President of the CIIS, pointed out that with or without the diplomatic policy adjustment, Egypt still has a strategic partnership with the United States, and the Egypt-U.S. relationship will continue to be important to Morsi. Considering its strategic alliance with Washington, Egypt will not go very far down the path of ameliorating its relationship with Tehran.
Dong explained that the current relief between Egypt and Iran does not entail a complete reversal of their previous relationship. They are still alert and cautious toward each other. In addition, the complicated geopolitical fight between the Sunni and Shiite branches of Islam is still ongoing—while most of Egypt’s Muslims are Sunnis, Shiites make up the majority of the population in Iran. Although Morsi has a mild Islamic background, he is the leader of a secular country, which is averse to Iran’s Islamic regime. “The amelioration between Egypt and Iran is very limited, and what Morsi showed is merely an attitude,” Dong concluded.
Dong believed that the new president of Egypt will stick to the principle of balance when developing relations with influential powers, the Islamic world and major economies. Dong stressed that for China, the approach offers a precious opportunity to deepen its friendly cooperation with Arab countries.
Continuing traditional ties
Morsi kicked off his trip to China on August 28, in the president’s first trip outside Africa and the Middle East. Observers noted that Morsi’s choice underscored the value Egypt places on its relationship with China, especially as it looks to promote an economic recovery. At the same time, building a strong relationship with Egypt will put China in a better position to get involved in the peace process in the Middle East.
Morsi came to China with a host of political, economic and diplomatic tasks.
Politically, he hoped to follow Egypt’s tradition of friendship with China. Egypt set up diplomatic relations with China in 1956, and was the first country in the Middle East and Africa to do so. In 1999, Egypt built a strategic cooperative relationship with China—another first in the region. When speaking with Chinese President Hu Jintao, Morsi said Egypt will maintain high-level exchanges with China and promote links between governments and political parties.
Another important reason Morsi came to China was his country’s current economic troubles. Now that Egypt, a long-time leader in the Arab world, has risen out of last year’s bloody social unrest, the most pressing challenge for Morsi and his government is to revive the country’s stagnant economy.
“Everything is undone now in Egypt. But Morsi’s top challenge is still the country’s economic recovery,” said He Wenping, a senior research fellow with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS). She pointed out that Egypt’s economy has slowed due to social instability in the past year. The country’s tourism sector is far from reviving, and the unemployment rate is more than 20 percent.
He Wenping pointed out that the latest statistics showed that about 40 percent of Egyptian people are living below the poverty line. To keep prices under control, the Egyptian Government has adopted a subsidy policy, causing a huge budget deficit. “Egypt now needs international development assistance and foreign investment,” she said.“Trade between China and Egypt hasn’t been influenced very much by the turmoil in the Middle East, so Egypt hopes to enlarge its exports to China while attracting investment from China.” Bilateral trade rose to $8.8 bil-lion last year, up nearly 30 percent year on year.
The visiting president also said Egypt hopes to expand its political cooperation with China as well as economic cooperation in areas such as manufacturing, agriculture, fishery, finance, electronics, communications and transportation infrastructure. Morsi was accompanied by a group of Egyptian business leaders on his trip to China, and the two countries signed a series of cooperation agreements.
Morsi invited Chinese companies to invest in Egypt and vowed to create a safe and stable environment for the enterprises. He called on the two countries to promote exchanges in civil aviation, tourism, education and technology. Egypt expects China to increase its total investment in Egypt from the current $500 million to $2 billion in three years.
Another target of Morsi’s trip was to strengthen communication with China in terms of the regional situation. Qu Xing, President of the China Institute of International Studies(CIIS), said the turmoil in the past year has weakened Egypt’s reigning influence in the Arab world. To inspire Egypt’s all-around revival, Morsi must regain the country’s decisive position on regional hotspot issues, such as the Syria issue. “Egypt can further communicate with China on Middle East developments, and it can also form a solid basis for expanded cooperation with China,” said Qu, stressing China’s opportunity to play a constructive role in the region.
While meeting President Hu, Morsi said Egypt appreciates and respects China’s position on major international and regional issues. He said Egypt is ready to strengthen communication and coordination with China and cope with challenges through joint efforts. He also promised that Egypt will play a positive role in the development of Sino-Arab relations and Sino-African relations.
Rebalancing foreign policy
Morsi’s trip schedule revealed his new diplomatic strategy of conducting a pluralistic diplomacy based on the principle of balance. Chinese observers pointed out that the Morsi administration intends to keep a distance from the United States in order to relieve do- mestic pressure. In addition, Morsi’s Tehran visit showed Cairo’s stance on conducting a normal diplomatic relationship with Iran, suggesting the two countries’ relationship will not see a dramatic improvement.
He Wenping from the CASS said it is not rational to judge Morsi’s diplomatic policy from only one trip, but she stressed that Egypt is certain to maintain a pluralistic diplomatic strategy rather than simply following U.S. commands.
Egypt doesn’t want to be tied up with the West, particularly the Middle East wars launched by the United States. In the Hosni Mubarak era, Egypt had maintained an extremely close relationship with the United States, which was one of the points raising Egyptian people’s objections. Morsi’s new government wants to show that it is different from the Mubarak administration, so Egypt will no longer be Washington’s attendant. Besides, He Wenping pointed out that Morsi hopes to see a pluralistic and balanced situation in the Middle East.
Wang Suolao, a professor with Peking University, stressed that the core of Morsi’s diplomatic policy is that Egypt must make decisions based on its own interests instead of playing up to U.S. interests. Wang noted that Morsi must find a way to keep a distance between Egypt’s diplomatic independence and U.S. aid. The United States provides at least $2 billion in assistance to Egypt, about $1.4 billion for military aid and the rest for economic help.
Wang said Morsi will not give up such a huge amount of assistance, because the country is facing economic difficulties. Moreover, if the country’s military relationship with the United States doesn’t go over well, Morsi will face pressure from the military circle.
Dong Manyuan, Vice President of the CIIS, pointed out that with or without the diplomatic policy adjustment, Egypt still has a strategic partnership with the United States, and the Egypt-U.S. relationship will continue to be important to Morsi. Considering its strategic alliance with Washington, Egypt will not go very far down the path of ameliorating its relationship with Tehran.
Dong explained that the current relief between Egypt and Iran does not entail a complete reversal of their previous relationship. They are still alert and cautious toward each other. In addition, the complicated geopolitical fight between the Sunni and Shiite branches of Islam is still ongoing—while most of Egypt’s Muslims are Sunnis, Shiites make up the majority of the population in Iran. Although Morsi has a mild Islamic background, he is the leader of a secular country, which is averse to Iran’s Islamic regime. “The amelioration between Egypt and Iran is very limited, and what Morsi showed is merely an attitude,” Dong concluded.
Dong believed that the new president of Egypt will stick to the principle of balance when developing relations with influential powers, the Islamic world and major economies. Dong stressed that for China, the approach offers a precious opportunity to deepen its friendly cooperation with Arab countries.