Days ago, Egypt’s foreign minister made a comment that shocked many in the Muslim world. According to Egypt’s Amal Al Ummah, the newspaper of Egypt’s Muslim brotherhood, which includes the largest group of opposition members of parliament, Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit said the following:
“The Egyptian perception of perils to our national security don’t differentiate between the threat posed by Israel’s nuclear capabilities and the potential threat of Iran’s nuclear program.”
This article, written by columnist Ibrahim Mansour, not only criticizes the Egyptian regime for putting the two nuclear programs on an equal footing, he lambastes the Egyptian government for its failed policies that have ceded leadership in the Muslim world to Iran, which has not only expanded its influence into traditional Egyptian spheres of influence, it has supplanted Egypt as the country Washington looks to as an intermediary.
For Amal Al Ummah, Ibrahim Mansour writes in part:
“The recent statement by Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit on the nuclear capabilities of Israel and Iran was bazaar. … In his statement, Foreign Minister Gheit, along with the government-run media chorus, persevered in mounting an attack on Iran and its policies. All of this after Iran has taken full advantage of the void left in the region by the Egyptian regime, which has explicitly conceded and minimized its own role – an invitation to Tehran to exploit the situation and extend its presence into all areas abandoned by Egypt. This is what persuaded the new American administration to re-position itself toward Iran and turn a new page in cooperation, with Tehran extending its influence into the most important priorities of U.S. policy, particularly Iraq.”
Then, in regard to Israel’s recent visit to Egypt and the relative threat of Iranian and Israeli nukes, Mansour writes in part:
“Even if officials from Israel’s government visit Egypt and pay tribute to the president’s wisdom, the fact is that an Iranian nuclear weapon – if they acquired one – would be a deterrence of benefit to Arabs. What can one say in the face of such a deception of hearts and minds? Even Allah makes mistakes!”
By Ibrahim Mansour
Translated By James Jacobson
May 15, 2009
Egypt – Amal Al Ummah – Original Article (Arabic)
The recent statement by Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit on the nuclear capabilities of Israel and Iran was bazaar. He said, “the Egyptian perception of perils to our national security don’t differentiate between the threat posed by Israel’s nuclear capabilities and the potential threat of Iran’s nuclear program.” This is erroneous.
In his statement, Aboul Gheit, along with the government-run media chorus, persevered in mounting an attack on Iran and its policies. All of this comes after Iran has taken full advantage of the void left in the region by the Egyptian regime, which has explicitly conceded and minimized its own role – an invitation to Tehran to exploit the situation and extend its presence into all areas abandoned by Egypt. This is what persuaded the new American administration to re-position itself toward Iran and turn a new page in cooperation, with Tehran extending its influence into the most important priorities of U.S. policy, particularly Iraq.
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