Last week, the Israeli embassy in Egypt was formally reopened in a public ceremony—four years after a mob attack forced its closing during the height of the Arab Spring. Relations between Israel and Egypt have since improved, and security cooperation is robust, but, asks Zvi Mazel, will trade follow?
Since Abdel Fattah el-Sisi took the helm, there has been a significant lessening of tension between Cairo and Jerusalem. The new president has refrained from attacking Israel publicly, . . . though he reiterates his support for a Palestinian state with east Jerusalem as its capital. The Egyptian media are still overwhelmingly hostile, but in more subdued tones, even though there are still outbursts of hatred, mainly from Islamist circles.
What is going to happen now? Will Sisi take the momentous decision to promote much- needed economic cooperation for the benefit of both countries, fulfilling at long last the great expectations of the [1979] peace treaty? So far, the Egyptian president has been proceeding with slow and careful steps to minimize opposition from home and from Arab countries.
At the moment he is focused on the forthcoming parliamentary elections and has no wish to be embroiled in what is still a hot topic in his country. However, when—or if—his position is fully secure and Islamist terrorism under control, he is too pragmatic a man to reject mutually beneficial cooperation. This is perhaps the true meaning of Wednesday’s small, but significant, event.
Read more on Jerusalem Post: http://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Politics-And-Diplomacy/Analysis-A-moderately-hopeful-sign-for-Israel-from-Cairo-415793