Battered but Still Standing, Egypt Tries to Weather the Economic Ravages of the Iran War
While Egypt is not in the direct line of fire in the US-Israeli war with Iran, its economy is acutely vulnerable to the conflict. In addition to the rising energy prices and shortages that have affected much of the world, it also struggled with issues that reflected its economy’s own underlying structural vulnerabilities.
Trump’s big week in the Middle East weighed down by troubles on other fronts
US President Donald Trump started off his week by flying to Israel and Egypt to mark the Gaza cease-fire and release of the last remaining Israeli hostages. But as these positive developments unfolded in the Middle East, the Trump administration’s overall agenda remained weighed down on other fronts.
Water and Power: Egypt, Sudan, and Ethiopia at Odds Over Africa’s Largest Dam
In this episode of Middle East Focus, hosts Alistair Taylor and Matthew Czekaj are joined by MEI Senior Fellow Mirette F. Mabrouk to unpack the growing tensions over the recently inaugurated Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) on the Nile.
For over 30 years Egypt’s foreign policy has stood on three key pillars: building strategic relations with the United States, maintaining the peace treaty with Israel, and promoting the security of Arab states in the Gulf. The presidency and the security apparatus, moreover, have often overshadowed and minimized the influence of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the policymaking process. These pillars solidified under the rule of Hosni Mubarak, and as a result President Mohamed Morsi will not be able to uproot them anytime soon.
Since the most recent but now routine eruptions of violence between street protesters and Egypt’s state, speculation has swirled about the durability of the pact between the Muslim Brotherhood and Egypt’s armed forces.
When President Mohamed Morsi granted himself sweeping new powers last November, he unwittingly accomplished something no one had yet achieved. He managed to bring Egypt’s fractious and disparate political factions together around a single cause: bitterly opposing him and his Muslim Brotherhood.
When I moved to Cairo in 1981 I discovered a courtly and safe city. The streets were alive with playful banter, expressions of the renowned Egyptian joie de vivre. Men who wished to attract the attention of lady passers-by sang bits of love songs or called them things like “minaret” and “gazelle.”
A Conversation with al-Gama`a al-Islamiya’s Hani Nour Eldin
Hani Nour Eldin is a member of the Egyptian Islamist group al-Gama`a al-Islamiya and an administrative employee of the Suez Canal Authority. In 2011 he was elected to parliament as part of the group’s political arm, the Building and Development Party. In June 2012 he caused considerable controversy when he traveled to Washington, D.C. as part of a parliamentary delegation.
Ten months have passed since the election of the Muslim Brotherhood’s Mohamed Morsi as Egypt’s first post-uprising president. During his election campaign, Morsi repeatedly promised “change.” So far, however, it appears that Egypt’s bureaucracy has been more successful at changing Morsi’s plans and discourse than he has been at changing the state’s structures.
Interview with Ambassador Dr. Mohamed Noman Galal: Reflections of a Scholar-Diplomat on Arab-Asia Relations
To be sure, Asia is the home of great civilizations. It is also the continent of rising powers, dynamic economies, and nearly half of the world’s population. For these reasons, it only makes sense that Egypt continues seeking ways to expand its ties with Asian countries. It will take imaginative Egyptian leadership to accomplish this objective and, more broadly, to capitalize on the country’s location and to help unleash its people’s creative energy.
Economic Effects of the Arab Spring: Policy Failures and Mounting Challenges
Thu, 2/28/2013 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm The Middle East Institute is proud to host economists Andreas Bauer and Dr. Zubair Iqbal for an examination of the economic impact of the upheavals affecting Arab Spring countries, including Egypt and Tunisia. Since the 2011 uprisings, growth in the MENA region has slowed, inequality worsened, and unemployment increased, thus weakening the popular support needed for new governments to introduce difficult, but necessary, economic reforms.
Economic Effects of the Arab Spring: Policy Failures and Mounting Challenges
Thu, 2/28/2013 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm The Middle East Institute is proud to host economists Andreas Bauer and Dr. Zubair Iqbal for an examination of the economic impact of the upheavals affecting Arab Spring countries, including Egypt and Tunisia. Since the 2011 uprisings, growth in the MENA region has slowed, inequality worsened, and unemployment increased, thus weakening the popular support needed for new governments to introduce difficult, but necessary, economic reforms.
Economic Effects of the Arab Spring: Policy Failures and Mounting Challenges
Thu, 2/28/2013 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm The Middle East Institute is proud to host economists Andreas Bauer and Dr. Zubair Iqbal for an examination of the economic impact of the upheavals affecting Arab Spring countries, including Egypt and Tunisia. Since the 2011 uprisings, growth in the MENA region has slowed, inequality worsened, and unemployment increased, thus weakening the popular support needed for new governments to introduce difficult, but necessary, economic reforms.
Economic Effects of the Arab Spring: Policy Failures and Mounting Challenges
Thu, 2/28/2013 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm The Middle East Institute is proud to host economists Andreas Bauer and Dr. Zubair Iqbal for an examination of the economic impact of the upheavals affecting Arab Spring countries, including Egypt and Tunisia. Since the 2011 uprisings, growth in the MENA region has slowed, inequality worsened, and unemployment increased, thus weakening the popular support needed for new governments to introduce difficult, but necessary, economic reforms.
Interview with Indian Ambassador (ret.) Ranjit Gupta: Cairo, Egypt — The First Posting (1965-1968)
Even before I left India for Cairo, I had the impression that there was a special relationship between India and Egypt. Indeed, within a few weeks of my arrival in Cairo, I found tangible manifestations that it was indeed so and discovered many more in due course.
The oldest peer-reviewed publication dedicated to the study of the modern Middle East, MEI’s flagship journal covers politics, society, and culture in the region.
