Egypt–United States relations

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Egyptian - American relations
Map indicating locations of Egypt and United States

Egypt
United States
Diplomatic mission
Embassy of Egypt, Washington, D.C.Embassy of the United States, Cairo

Egypt and the United States formally began relations in 1922 after Egypt gained independence from the United Kingdom.[1] Relations between both countries have largely been dictated by regional issues in the Middle East such as the Israeli–Palestinian conflict and Counterterrorism. But also domestic issues in Egypt regarding the country's human rights record and American support for the regimes of Hosni Mubarak and Abdel Fattah el-Sisi which have been described as tyrannical.

History[]

Background[]

The U.S. had minimal dealings with Egypt when it was controlled by the Ottoman Empire (before 1882) and Britain from 1882–1922.

President Gamal Abdel Nasser (1956–70) antagonized the U.S. by his pro-Soviet policies and anti-Israeli rhetoric, but the U.S. helped keep him in power by forcing Britain and France to immediately end their invasion in 1956. American policy has been to provide strong support to governments that supported U.S. and Israeli interests in the region, especially presidents Anwar Sadat (1970–81) and Hosni Mubarak (1981–2011).

Between 1948 and 2011, the U.S. provided Egypt with a cumulative total of $71.6 billion in bilateral military and economic aid. This is the second-largest amount given to any nation in the same period (after Israel).[2]

1950s and 1960s[]

Initially, the Egyptian Revolution of 1952 did not alter relations with the United States, which continued sending foreign aid.[3] By 1956, the U.S. was alarmed at the closer ties between Egypt and the Soviet Union and prepared the OMEGA Memorandum as a stick to reduce the regional power of President Gamal Abdel Nasser. When Egypt recognized Communist China, the U.S. ended talks about funding the Aswan Dam, a high prestige project much desired by Egypt. The dam was later built by the Soviet Union. When Nasser nationalized the Suez Canal in 1956, the Suez Crisis erupted with Britain and France threatening war to retake control of the canal and depose Nasser. U.S. Secretary of State John Foster Dulles proposed creating an international consortium to run the canal, a solution which Nasser rejected.

At the same time, the United States grew unwilling to support a foreign intervention against Egypt, which it feared would lead to Soviet intervention. It also was opposed to European colonialism and worried that a Western intervention in Egypt would weaken its authority to condemn the Soviet invasion of Hungary.[4] Israel invaded the Suez in October 1956, and Britain and France (in league with Israel) sent in troops to seize the canal. Using heavy diplomatic and economic pressure, the Eisenhower administration forced Britain and France to withdraw soon.[5] The U.S. delegation to the United Nations voted in favor of United Nations Security Council resolutions condemning the invasion and creating the United Nations Emergency Force.[4] More significantly, the U.S. threatened to sell its bonds and deny emergency IMF assistance for oil shortages, which would caused a devaluation of the pound sterling that would have left Britain unable to import crucial goods.[4][6] This American pressure led to a temporary warming of Egyptian relations with the United States, although President Dwight D. Eisenhower warned that the United States would consider a closure of the Straits of Tiran to Israeli shipping as an act of war.[5]

Relations became strained again in the 1960s due to Egypt's Soviet arms purchases and refusal to accept an U.S.-brokered arms control agreement for the Arab-Israeli conflict, leading to the U.S. sale of M48A4 Mag'ach tanks and Douglas A-4 Skyhawk attack aircraft to Israel in 1965. This arms sale escalated tensions further, with Egypt expelling the UNEF and closing the Straits of Tiran. When President Lyndon B. Johnson failed to gain diplomatic support for an international naval operation to forcibly reopen the straits, he reluctantly decided to support a unilateral preemptive invasion by Israel. The subsequent Six-Day War ended with the Israel Defense Force occupying most of the Palestinian territories, including the formerly Egyptian-occupied Gaza Strip, and the Sinai Peninsula. The United States tried to negotiate a ceasefire in order to prevent a Soviet intervention and endorsed United Nations Security Council Resolution 242, which encouraged Israel to return its occupied territories in exchange for peace agreements. However, Egypt accused the United States of supporting Israel in the war.[7] On June 8, 1967, Egypt severed diplomatic relations with the U.S. and expelled Americans in Egypt. During and after the war, Egypt aligned with the USSR, which airlifted arms and ammunition to rebuild the Egyptian Armed Forces, and also sent thousands of advisors to train the Egyptian Army and manage its air defense. [8] Egypt, along with the Soviet Union and Israel, rejected Johnson's successor Richard Nixon's proposed Rogers Plan to resolve to the Arab-Israeli conflict but did accept a lighter agreement to end the War of Attrition.[9]

1973–2011[]

Egyptian President Anwar Sadat with US President Jimmy Carter outside the White House in 1977.

At the beginning of the 1970's U.S.-Egypt relations remained poor because of the presence of anti-aircraft batteries near the Suez Canal. After the death of Nasser his more moderate successor Anwar Sadat opened backchannel negotiations with the Nixon administration for peace agreement with Israel, but they stalled because of Israel's unwillingness to withdraw the IDF from the eastern bank of the Suez Canal. Confident that Egypt would not try to invade Israel, Nixon and his National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger delayed negotiations until after the 1972 United States presidential election and the 1973 Israeli legislative election. Instead Egypt and Syria launched a surprise invasion of Israel starting the 1973 Yom Kippur War, and Egypt rejected a joint U.S.-Soviet ceasefire proposal. During the war the United States agreed to an airlift to resupply Israel, and although it accepted Soviet ceasefire proposals at the U.N. Security Council Kissinger encouraged Israeli forces to continue advancing into Egypt after the tide of the war shifted.[10] The United States finally convinced Israel to accept a ceasefire because of the OPEC oil embargo and Soviet General Secretary Leonid Brezhnev's threat of direct Soviet Armed Forces intervention.[10][11]

After the war, Egyptian foreign policy began to shift as a result of the change in Egypt's leadership from the fiery Nasser to the much more moderate Anwar Sadat and the emerging peace process between Egypt and Israel. Sadat realized that reaching a settlement of the Arab–Israeli conflict is a precondition for Egyptian development. To achieve this goal, Sadat ventured to enhance U.S.–Egyptian relations to foster a peace process with Israel. After a seven-year hiatus, both countries reestablished normal diplomatic relations on February 28, 1974. At the same time, the United States engaged in "shuttle diplomacy" to negotiate disengagement agreements between the Arab world and Israel. Israel and Egypt signed the U.S.-brokered Sinai Interim Agreement in 1975.[12]

Sadat asked Moscow for help, and Washington responded by offering more favorable of army's financial aid and technology. The advantages included Egypt's expulsion of 20,000 Soviet advisors and the reopening of the Suez Canal, and were seen by Nixon as "an investment in peace." [13][14]

Encouraged by Washington, Sadat opened negotiations with Israel, resulting most notably in the Camp David Accords brokered by President Jimmy Carter and made peace with Israel in a historic peace treaty in 1979.[15] Sadat's domestic policy, called 'Infitah,' was aimed at modernizing the economy and removing Nasser's heavy-handed controls. Sadat realized American aid was essential to that goal, and it allowed him to both disengage from the Israeli conflict, and to pursue a regional peace policy.[16]

2011 Egyptian revolution and aftermath[]

Further information: International reactions to the 2011 Egyptian revolution § Americas
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry with Egyptian President AbdelFattah al-Sisi in Cairo on April 20, 2016

During the 2011 Egyptian revolution top US government officials urged Hosni Mubarak and his government to reform, to refrain from using violence and to respect the rights of protesters such as the right to peaceful assembly and association. Ties between the two countries became strained after Egyptian soldiers and police raided 17 offices of local and foreign NGOs—including the International Republican Institute (IRI), the National Democratic Institute (NDI), Freedom House and the German Konrad Adenauer Foundation on December 29, 2011 because of allegations of illegal funding from abroad.[17] The United States condemned the raids as an attack on democratic values[18] and threatened to stop the $1.3bn in military aid and about $250m in economic aid Washington gives Egypt every year,[19] but this threat was dismissed by the Egyptian government.[19] 43 NGO members[20] including Sam LaHood, son of U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, and Nancy Okail, then resident director of U.S.-based NGO Freedom House's operations in Egypt, were charged with obtaining international funds illegally and failing to register with the Egyptian government.[21] After an appeal by those charged, the case had been switched from a criminal court to one handling misdemeanours, where the maximum penalty was a fine and not imprisonment.[22] After lifting a travel ban on 17 foreign NGO members,[22] among them 9 Americans,[22][23] the United States and Egypt began to repair their relations.[24] Nevertheless, on September 11, 2012, (the 11th anniversary of the September 11 attacks) Egyptian protesters stormed the US embassy in Cairo, tore down the American flag and replaced it with a flag with Islamic symbols,[25][26] to mock the Americans after an anti-Islamic movie denigrating the Islamic prophet, Muhammad, was shot in the United States and released on the internet.

In November 2012, Barack Obama—for the first time since Egypt signed the peace treaty with Israel—declared that the United States does not consider Egypt's Islamist-led government an ally or an enemy.[27][28][29] In another incident, General Martin Dempsey said that the U.S.–Egypt military ties will depend on Egypt's actions towards Israel. He said in June 2012; "The Egyptian leaders will salute a civilian president for the first time … and then they'll go back to barracks. But I don't think it's going to be as clean as that. That's why we want to stay engaged with them … not [to] shape or influence, but simply be there as a partner to help them understand their new responsibilities".[30]

President Donald Trump greets the President of Egypt, Abd El-Fattah El-Sisi, May 2017

Ties between the two countries have temporarily soured since the overthrow of Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi on July 3, 2013, which followed a massive uprising against Morsi.[31] The Obama administration denounced Egyptian attempts to combat the Muslim Brotherhood and its supporters, cancelling future military exercises and halting the delivery of F-16 jet fighters and AH-64 Apache attack helicopters to the Egyptian Armed Forces.[32] Popular sentiment among secular Egyptians towards the United States has been negatively affected by conspiracy theories which claim that the U.S. assisted the unpopular Muslim Brotherhood in attaining power [33][34][35][36]—as well as the Obama administration's policy of tolerance toward the Muslim Brotherhood and the past presidency of Morsi. However, in a 2014 news story, the BBC reported that "the US has revealed it has released $575 million (£338m) in military aid to Egypt that had been frozen since the ousting of President Mohammed Morsi last year."[37] In spite of President Trump's travel ban to neighboring and other Muslim-majority countries, the relations between Egypt and the United States are expected to be warm.[38]

Since 1987, Egypt has been receiving military aid at an average of $1.3 billion a year.[2][39]

In April 2019, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warned Egypt against purchasing Russian Sukhoi Su-35, saying "We’ve made clear that if those systems were to be purchased, the CAATSA statute would require sanctions on the [al-Sisi's] regime."[40]

  • U.S. President Barack Obama tours the Pyramids during his famous Cairo speech about a "change" in the US relations with the Islamic world, June 2009.

  • U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry meets with Egypt's president Mohamed Morsi, who was the first Egyptian president to have gained power through an election, on May 25, 2013.

  • Secretary Kerry talking with Egyptian Foreign Minister Nabil Fahmy of the interim government (which was installed in the aftermath of Morsi's overthrow until further elections could be held), on 3 November 2013.

  • Secretary Kerry bids farewell to then-Egyptian Minister of Defense General Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, who was the Commander-in-Chief of the Egyptian Armed Forces.

  • Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi with former U.S. President Donald Trump at the 45th G7 in Biarritz, September 2019.

Military cooperation[]

US President George W. Bush with President of Egypt Hosni Mubarak at Camp David in 2002.

Following the peace treaty with Israel, between 1979 and 2003, Egypt acquired about $19 billion in military aid, making Egypt the second largest non-NATO recipient of U.S. military aid after Israel. Egypt received about $30 billion in economic aid within the same time frame. In 2009, the U.S. provided military assistance of $1.3 billion (equivalent to $1.57 billion in 2022), and economic assistance of $250 million (equivalent to $301.6 million in 2022).[41] In 1989 both Egypt and Israel became a Major non-NATO ally of the United States.

Military cooperation between the U.S. and Egypt is probably the strongest aspect of their strategic partnership. General Anthony Zinni, the former Commandant of the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), once said, "Egypt is the most important country in my area of responsibility because of the access it gives me to the region." Egypt was also described during the Clinton Administration as the most prominent player in the Arab world and a key U.S. ally in the Middle East. U.S. military assistance to Egypt was considered part of the administration's strategy to maintaining continued availability of Persian Gulf energy resources and to secure the Suez Canal, which serves both as an important international oil route and a critical route for U.S. warships transiting between the Mediterranean and either the Indian Ocean or the Persian Gulf.

Egyptian President Mubarak with US President Barack Obama in Cairo, Egypt, 4 June 2009.

Egypt is the strongest military power on the African continent,[42] and according to Jaffee Center for Strategic Studies' annual Middle East Strategic Balance, the largest in the Middle East.

The U.S. State Department announced a possible sale of missiles to Egypt worth $197 million. The sale was reportedly announced days after the Egyptian government detained family members of a human rights activist, having dual citizenship of the US and Egypt, Mohamed Soltan. Soltan leads a non-profit organization called the Freedom Initiative. Soltan demanded attention at the impunity and disregard for the human rights in Egypt under the current regime led by President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.[43]

The Committee to Protect Journalists on 22 April 2021 collaborated with 13 other civil society groups and sent an open letter urging the Biden administration to not waive the human rights situation while sending military aid to Egypt for the fiscal year 2020. Egypt is yet to receive $300 million in Foreign Military Financing for the Fiscal Year 2020. Rights groups including Amnesty International, DAWN, Human Rights Watch, and more, urged the administration to refrain from using the national security waiver when releasing the military aid.[44] [45]

Counterterrorism[]

Despite differences and periods of friction in relations between the two countries, the U.S.–Egyptian relations under Mubarak had evolved, moving beyond the Middle East peace process towards an independent bilateral friendship. It was in the U.S. interest that Egypt was able to present moderate voice in Arab councils and persuade other Arab states to join the peace process and to normalize their relations with the U.S.

However lately Egyptian–American relations have become a little tense. This is due to a great extent to the Egyptian unwillingness to send troops to Afghanistan and Iraq in peace stabilization missions. Egypt strongly backed the U.S. in its war against international terrorism after the September 11th attacks of 2001 but refused to send troops to Afghanistan during the war and after it. Egypt also opposed U.S. military intervention of March 2003 in Iraq[46] through their membership in the African Union[47] and the Arab League,[48] continued to oppose U.S. occupation of the country after the war and further refused to comply with U.S. requests to send troops to the country even under a UN umbrella.

The issue of participation in the post-war construction efforts in Iraq has been controversial in Egypt and in the Arab world as a whole. Opponents say that the war was illegal and it is necessary to wait until Iraq has legal representative government to deal with it. On the other hand, supporters of participation argued that the responsibility to protect Iraqis and to help them in time of crisis should prevail and guide the Egyptian action in Iraq, despite the fact that the Iraqis do not agree.

As of 2011, US officials quoted in USA Today described Egyptian security and military as having shared "valuable intelligence" and providing other "useful counterterrorism assistance", in the 1980, 90s and "particularly in the decade since the 9/11 attacks". Under President Hosni Mubarak and his intelligence chief Omar Suleiman, the U.S. has had "an important partnership" in counterterrorism.[49]

When the U.S. made cuts in military aid to Egypt following the overthrow of Mohamed Morsi and crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood movement, it continued funding for counterterrorism, border security and security operations in the Sinai Peninsula and Gaza Strip, considered very important to Israel's security.[50]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ "U.S. Relations With Egypt". United States Department of State. January 5, 2021. Retrieved December 17, 2021.
  2. ^ a b "Commentary: The U.S. is right to restore aid to Egypt". Reuters. July 30, 2018.
  3. ^ "Milestones: 1945–1952 - Office of the Historian". history.state.gov. Retrieved 2021-06-22.
  4. ^ a b c "Milestones: 1953–1960 - Office of the Historian". history.state.gov. Retrieved 2021-06-22.
  5. ^ a b Burns, William J. "Punishing Nasser." In Economic Aid and American Policy toward Egypt, 1955-1981. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1985.
  6. ^ Kyle, Keith (2003). Suez: Britain's End of Empire in the Middle East. I.B. Tauris. ISBN 978-1-86064-811-3.
  7. ^ "Milestones: 1961–1968 - Office of the Historian". history.state.gov. Retrieved 2021-06-22.
  8. ^ Ginor, Isabella; Remez, Gideon (August 2017). The Soviet-Israeli War, 1967-1973: The USSR's Military Intervention in the Egyptian-Israeli Conflict. ISBN 9780190911751.
  9. ^ "Milestones: 1969–1976 - Office of the Historian". history.state.gov. Retrieved 2021-06-22.
  10. ^ a b "Milestones: 1969–1976 - Office of the Historian". history.state.gov. Retrieved 2021-06-22.
  11. ^ "Milestones: 1969–1976 - Office of the Historian". history.state.gov. Retrieved 2021-06-22.
  12. ^ "Milestones: 1969–1976 - Office of the Historian". history.state.gov. Retrieved 2021-06-22.
  13. ^ Craig A. Daigle, "The Russians are going: Sadat, Nixon and the Soviet presence in Egypt." Middle East 8.1 (2004): 1.
  14. ^ Moshe Gat (2012). In Search of a Peace Settlement: Egypt and Israel Between the Wars, 1967-1973. Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 256–58. ISBN 9780230375000.
  15. ^ Adfi Safty, "Sadat's Negotiations with the United States and Israel: From Sinai to Camp David," American Journal of Economics & Sociology, July 1991, 50#3 pp 285–298
  16. ^ Mannin G. Weinbaum, "Egypt's 'Infitah' and the Politics of US Economic Assistance," Middle Eastern Studies, March 1985, Vol. 21 Issue 2, pp 206–222
  17. ^ "Egypt unrest: NGO offices raided in Cairo". BBC News. 29 December 2012. Retrieved 13 April 2012.
  18. ^ "US says Egypt agrees to stop raids on democracy groups". BBC News. 30 December 2012. Retrieved 13 April 2012.
  19. ^ a b "Egypt PM dismisses US aid threat over activists' trial". BBC News. 8 February 2012. Retrieved 13 April 2012.
  20. ^ "US senators warn Egypt of 'disastrous' rupture in ties". BBC News. 8 February 2012. Retrieved 13 April 2012.
  21. ^ "Egypt judges in NGO funding trial resign". BBC News. 29 February 2012. Retrieved 13 April 2012.
  22. ^ a b c "Foreign NGO workers reach Cyprus after leaving Egypt". BBC News. 2 March 2012. Retrieved 13 April 2012.
  23. ^ "Egypt 'lifts' travel ban on US NGO worker". BBC News. 1 March 2012. Retrieved 13 April 2012.
  24. ^ "US and Egypt seek to repair relationship after NGO row". BBC News. 7 March 2012. Retrieved 13 April 2012.
  25. ^ Brian Walker; Paul Cruickshank; Tracy Doueiry (11 September 2012). "Protesters storm U.S. Embassy in Cairo". CNN. Retrieved 11 September 2012.
  26. ^ "Cairo protesters scale U.S. Embassy wall, remove flag". USA Today. 11 September 2012. Retrieved 11 September 2012.
  27. ^ Jonathan Marcus (2012-09-13). "Obama: Egypt is not US ally, nor an enemy". BBC News. Retrieved 2016-10-01.
  28. ^ "Obama: Egypt Not An Ally, But Not An Enemy". Huffington Post. 13 September 2012.
  29. ^ "Obama: Egypt neither enemy nor ally". Reuters. 13 September 2012.
  30. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2014-07-14. Retrieved 2014-06-28.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  31. ^ Sharp, Jeremy M. (12 March 2019). "Egypt: Background and U.S. Relations" (PDF). Congressional Research Service. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  32. ^ Holland, Steve; Mason, Jeff (15 August 2013). "Obama cancels military exercises, condemns violence in Egypt". Reuters. Retrieved 8 October 2014.
  33. ^ "Clouded U.S. policy on Egypt". Foreign Policy. 2013-02-26. Retrieved 2016-10-01.
  34. ^ "The Weirdest Story in the History of the World". Talkingpointsmemo.com. 2013-07-08. Retrieved 2016-10-01.
  35. ^ "US: We did not support particular Egyptian presidential candidate". Egypt Independent. 2012-07-16. Retrieved 2016-10-01.
  36. ^ "Liberal and Christian figures, groups protest Clinton's Egypt visit". Al-Ahram Weekly. 15 July 2012. Retrieved 2016-10-01.
  37. ^ "US unlocks military aid to Egypt, backing President Sisi". BBC News. 22 June 2014.
  38. ^ Reuters. (February 10, 2017). "Analysis: Trump presidency heralds new era of US-Egypt ties". Jerusalem Post. Retrieved February 10, 2017.
  39. ^ "Why US aid to Egypt is never under threat". Al-Jazeera. 3 October 2017.
  40. ^ "Pompeo: Egypt would face sanctions over Russian Su-35s". Anadolu Agency. April 10, 2019.
  41. ^ "Scenesetter: President Mubarak's visit to Washington". U.S. Department of State. 2009-05-19.
  42. ^ "RANKED: The world's 9 strongest militaries". Business Insider. Retrieved 2017-06-26.
  43. ^ "Biden administration approves arms sale to Egypt despite human rights concerns". CNN. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
  44. ^ "CPJ, other groups urge Biden administration not to waive human rights conditions on Egypt aid". Committee to Protect Journalists. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
  45. ^ "Open Letter Urges Biden Administration to Not Waive Conditions on Egypt Aid". POMED. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
  46. ^ "CNN.com - Mubarak warns of '100 bin Ladens' - Mar. 31, 2003". www.cnn.com. Retrieved 2017-06-26.
  47. ^ O'Brien, Fiona (6 February 2003). "African Union summit opposed to war in Iraq". The World Revolution. Archived from the original on 7 January 2004. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  48. ^ "BBC NEWS | Middle East | Arab states line up behind Iraq". news.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2017-06-26.
  49. ^ Hall, Mimi; Richard Wolf (4 February 2011). "Transition could weaken U.S. anti-terror efforts". USA Today. Retrieved 10 October 2013.
  50. ^ Bengali, Shashank; Laura King (October 9, 2013). "U.S. to partially cut aid to Egypt". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 10 October 2013.

Further reading[]

  • Alterman, Jon B. (2002). Egypt and American Foreign Assistance, 1952–1958. New York, NY: Palgrave.
  • Burns, William J. (1985). Economic Aid and American Policy Toward Egypt, 1955–1981. Albany, NY: SUNY Press.
  • Borzutzky, Silvia and David Berger. "Dammed If You Do, Dammed If You Don't: The Eisenhower Administration and the Aswan Dam," Middle East Journal, Winter 2010, 64#1 pp 84–102
  • Cohen, Stephen P. Beyond America's grasp: a century of failed diplomacy in the Middle East (2009)
  • Gardner, Lloyd C. The Road to Tahrir Square: Egypt and the United States from the Rise of Nasser to the Fall of Mubarak (2011)
  • Mikhail, Mona. "Egyptian Americans." Gale Encyclopedia of Multicultural America, edited by Thomas Riggs, (3rd ed., vol. 2, Gale, 2014, pp. 61-71). online
  • Oren, Michael B. Power, faith, and fantasy: America in the Middle East, 1776 to the present (2008)
  • O'Sullivan, Christopher D. FDR and the End of Empire: The Origins of American Power in the Middle East (2012)

External links[]

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