Mısır Nice Guy

Issue #224

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In this week’s recap:

• Sisi visit completes Turkey-Egypt thaw

• New lieutenants’ oath sparks debate

• Turkey (reportedly) asks to join BRICS

• Eurasianist group assaults US marines

• Domestic and diplomatic wraps

• Roblox appeals “virtual sex party” charges

We can Sisi clearly now, the rain is gone. © TCCB

In what analyst Gönül Tol called a symbol of the “new regional thinking in a post-Arab uprising Middle East”, Egyptian Pres. Abdel Fattah el-Sisi’s state visit to Ankara Wednesday marked a clear shift in Turkish foreign policy.

After years of calling Sisi a “democracy killer”, Turkish Pres. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan appears to have traded isolating ideological rifts for a broad rapprochement strategy to foster Turkey’s regional reintegration.

Sisi’s visit reciprocates Erdoğan’s February visit to Cairo. It also seals a long normalization process involving a surprise handshake, an exchange of ambassadors and the silencing of critical media throughout.

Economic factors played heavily in the Turkey-Egypt thaw, highlighted by the emphasis on boosting trade and commercial cooperation in Wednesday’s joint declaration. Sisi called on Turkish investors to explore more options in Egypt, while Erdoğan sought to deepen cooperation on natural gas and nuclear energy.

Both leaders also placed urgency on Israel-Gaza ceasefire negotiations – an area of common ground as Ankara and Cairo continue to coordinate humanitarian aid deliveries.

Notably, many regional security challenges were addressed during the visit, including Turkish-Syria relations, Iraqi security, stability in the Horn of Africa and Libyan sovereignty, which Sisi said he discussed with Erdoğan.

“We reiterated the need to close the chapter on this [the Libyan] protracted crisis by holding simultaneous presidential and legislative elections, withdrawing illegitimate foreign forces and mercenaries from the country, and ending the phenomenon of armed militias,” Sisi stated in the joint presser.

Assessing the Turkey-Egypt thaw, Dr. Pınar Akpınar, assist. prof. of international affairs at Qatar University, said economic necessities were the main driver, but regional security also played a significant role in rapprochement efforts.

“Their cooperation could serve as a stabilizing factor,” Akpınar told Turkey recap. “For instance, Turkey’s relations with Hamas and Egypt's role in Gaza ceasefire negotiations highlight their potential for cooperative conflict resolution​.”

Though she added the durability of the normalization process will likely depend on how both countries navigate their remaining differences.

“Issues such as Libya, disagreements over maritime boundaries and energy exploration in the Eastern Mediterranean, Turkey’s relations with the Muslim Brotherhood and diverging interests in Somalia could pose potential [future] disagreements,” Akpınar said.

– Diego Cupolo

Military academy graduates chant Kemalist slogans, stir controversy. © Selahattin Sönmez

Raptiye Rap Rap: New lieutenants’ oath sparks debate