CAIRO: Foreign Minister Nabil El-Araby denied Saturday any intention to cancel Egypt’s peace treaty with Israel signed in 1979, a year after the Camp David Accords.
In a live interview with Dream TV’s “Al-Ashera Masa’an” (10 pm), El-Araby discounted claims that Israel has been concerned about the fate of the peace treaty since the January 25 Revolution, which ousted former president Hosni Mubarak’s.
“I don’t think this is how [Israelis] analyze [the situation]. They are smarter than that,” El-Araby told TV host Mona El-Shazly during the interview.
“We will be committed to the signed treaty. But we will call on [Israel] to abide by this treaty as well,” he added.
The Camp David Accords were signed by Egypt’s late president Anwar Sadat and late Israeli prime minister Menachem Begin on September 17, 1978, following 13 days of secret negotiations at Camp David. A Framework for the Conclusion of a Peace Treaty between Egypt and Israel, led directly to the 1979 Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty, ending years of war between the two countries.
According to El-Araby, there is a major misunderstanding as to Egypt’s relationship with Israel.
“Such misinterpretation has to do with the fact that Israel sought to be treated ‘normally.’ Because the treaty documents were not properly [comprehended], some thought that we would treat Israel in … an exceptional way, which is not true,” he argued.
El-Araby further said that Israel has not violated the peace pact. “I cannot say that Israel violated the treaty. But…there are issues that have to be looked into,” El-Araby explained.
“For example, the Camp David Accords dictate that Israel had to enter into peace with all willing countries. Palestinians have sought to enter into peace with Israel and the latter have not responded,” he said.
“Israel built settlements on [Palestinian] lands that it was supposed to withdraw from based on United Nations Security Council Resolution 242 for 1967,” he added.
El-Araby said the Palestine file is run by more than one Egyptian entity, each of which, whether the foreign ministry or any other body, handles a specific angle.
“What is important is coordination among them…which I always seek and I’m sure is happening,” he said.
El-Araby criticized Egypt’s previous foreign policy, describing decisions as being taken “randomly” in an “improvised manner.”
“I noticed in the past few years…that our policy has turned into a reaction to what was going on. We had no comprehensive vision of what we wanted,” he said.
“This resulted from the fact that Egypt has no national security council…that involves the foreign minister, the defense minister, the interior minister, the finance minister…agriculture minister, each of them has a body that looks into certain issues… [and] presents the situation before the decision maker, whether the president or the prime minister depending on the followed ruling system,” he said.
El-Araby also refuted the former conception of Iran as an enemy to Egypt. “We cannot describe Iran as an enemy. I’m sure that many don’t know that we have an Iranian ambassador in Egypt and that Iran has an Egyptian ambassador,” El-Araby said.
“Iran is a country that exists in the region. All countries all over the world have ambassadors there except Israel and the US,” he said, adding that after the 1979 revolution, the country started to play a more influential role, which it has a right to do.
If there are security concerns, he added, they can be tackled. “We should not have unjustified fears. We will have a fresh start with all countries in the world in order to realize common interests,” El-Araby said.
