Egypt's Global Relations

Located in northeast Africa, Egypt is the heart of Arabia world and plays an active role in Global Politics. Over the past half-century, Egypt has had many relationships with foreign nations. Under the Nasser rule, Egypt was politically and militarily allied with the Soviet Union. His independent and anti-imperialist policy earned him enthusiastic support from the Communist government of the USSR. However, Sadat turns his head away from communism, looking to the west. Since then, Egypt has had good relations with the United States, receiving around $2 billion annual economic and military assistance to preserve regional stability. In return, Egypt aided the west in their war against Iraq. Egypt is also known for his relations with Israel. The Arab-Israeli conflict has been a large problem in the world, but the 1979 peace treaty has ensured good relations between the two. In addition, Egypt has foreign relations through business. There oil sales have allowed Egypt to make its presence in the world and help them make alliances with other countries.

British Rule in Egypt

The colonization of Egypt began in 1882 when the British forced Napoleon Bonaparte, the leader of the French Army, out of Africa. Instead of leaving Egypt to its people, Britain decided to colonize the country and control it through a protectorate. This allowed the British government to greedily control Egypt's economic and political decisions, and thus profit largely. Egypt's once balanced culture and economy was corrupted and exploited by the powerful British Empire.

The Suez Canal provided a
much more efficient route for
ships traveling from Europe to
areas in Africa and Southern Asia.

By imposing strict, and often absurd taxes on Egypt and its resources, the British government was able to accumulate extremely large sums of money that most Egyptians never saw. Along with Egypt's colonization, conveniently came the Suez Canal for Britain. Ships passing through were heavily taxed, and all profits went directly to the British Government. When the public learned of Britain's "business" scheme, Egyptians began leaving the country, much to the British's dismay. Without people to maintain land and the canal, their profit would be lost. In an effort to keep Egyptians from leaving, the British government decided to institute heavy public taxes that would be so expensive people would need to stay in Egypt just to pay them off. As a result, Egyptians trying to make money were forced maintain land for the British. Once taxes were paid off, people were left impoverished, or with only enough money to purchase necessities such as food and water. Through this parsimonious tax regimen, Britain effectively held Egyptians against their will, on their own land.

Modern Military History in Egypt

Egypt has always maintained a fairly modest army, even dating back to the ancient times. In 1952, it was the free officers that staged a military coup on the government and ever since they have had an important role in Egypt. Since decolonization, Egypt has taken part in 3 major wars, the first of which being the Arab-Israeli border conflict. Tension along this border and the Gaza has fostered decades of dispute that has been continuous since 1948. One of the more famous events during this conflict was the Six Day War in June of 1967 in which it was obvious to Israel the Arab nations were preparing for attack. Instead of waiting for them to come, Israel decided to launch their own campaign on June 5^th, taking out most of the opposing fleets. This was hugely embarrassing for the Arab world as they had been defeated in matter of six days. Under the reign of President Anwar Sadat, movements towards peace with Israel had begun in attempts to resolve the situation, and during this time Egypt began to turn their heads to the West, rejecting their Soviet allies. This led to the Egypt-Libya war of 1977 in which Libya showed their discontent with Egypt. After brief fighting, a cease –fire was negotiated, but tensions continued. This was seen as a victory for Egypt. They are also known for playing their part in the Persian Gulf War of 1990; however his was seen as a mostly American fought battle.

Over the past few years the Egyptian military has been fighting a domestic battle. Terrorism has become an increasing problem largely due to a rebel group called the Muslim Brotherhood whose aim is to topple the pro-western government. They have now succeeded in doing so, and once again power has been handed over to the armed forces who have been given the task to piece together a new government. 

Egypt's Economy

Since the ancient times, Egypt has relied heavily on agriculture due to their ability to grow various crops, but for the first time in the 1950’s we begin to see the first steps towards industrialization. Egypt’s fast growing population was depleting the agricultural resources, leading to the first industrialization program of 1952-1966, and in 1961 a major policy shift brought all economic activity under the purview of the government. When it looked as though things were about to change, their economy experienced a short setback that lasted from 1965-1974. However, the economy was free to breathe once more with the introduction of the “open door” policy whose purpose was to move their highly centralized economy to a more liberal economy which encouraged private investment. With this new policy Egypt saw rapid growth within its industries and economy. When they began to experience a “credit crunch” in the 1980’s due to non-performing loans, they were forced to implement the “Monetary” policy in order to contain inflation and stabilize the Egyptian Pound.

In the last few decades Egypt has seen a quite rapidly growing economy with the increased tourism, heavy industry, revenue from the Suez Canal, and huge oil supplies. Although they are not part of OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries), Egypt is home to large quantities of crude oil, which combined with natural gas makes up 12% of the countries GDP. Egypt continues to grow and massive external debt relief has show a great improvement in the countries macroeconomic situation. Yet, this massive growth has not managed to touch the lives of Egyptian citizens as the government has not been able to increase the standard of living.

Now, the current struggle for power in Egypt has paralyzed their economy. Foreign exchange reserves are being depleted and industrial production is running at only 50% capacity. The need for economic reform is crucial in to the future of Egypt. If the new government does not act soon, there could be an economic setback that will devastate the country.

Post-Colonial Government (1952 - Present)

Gamal Abdel Nasser

When Egypt finally escaped the forceful grasps of their colonial rulers, the free-officers were put in charge of instituting a new government to rule over Egypt. In 1953, Gen. Mohammed Naguib was appointed to rule Egypt, however his reign was soon outlived and the British implemented constitutional monarchy of 1922 was abolished. In 1954 the real mastermind of the revolution, Gamal Abdel Nasser rose to power and declared Egypt a republic, with himself as President. Nasser was a strong, charismatic leader, and a perfect fit for Egypt’s new era. He became an advocate for Egyptian and Arabian nationalism, encouraging a pan-Arabic movement throughout the Middle East. Nasser will rule the country until his death in 1970, but during his time in office he made quite and impact on in government.

Nasser’s new republic and constitution was divided into 3 branches, the executive, legislative, and judicial. The executive body consists of the President, Prime Minister, and a cabinet. Authority is given to an elected president who can appoint his vices. The president's term runs for 6 years. Egypt's legislative body is made up of the People's Assembly (454 members, 444 of which are elected and 10 are chosen by the president, and due to a bill passed in 2009 there are an additional 64 new seats set aside for women). There also is a 264-member Shura (consultative) Council (in which 88 members are appointed and 176 elected). Below the national level, authority is exercised by and through governors and mayors appointed by the central government and by popularly elected local councils. In the judicial system the Supreme Constitutional Court regulates the land.

Anwar Sadat

Some of Nasser’s many achievements as President of Egypt were the nationalization of the Suez Canal, Leading the United Arab Republic, and the modernization of Egypt. When he passed away on the September 28^th, 1970, his vice-president Anwar Sadat succeeded him as President of Egypt. Although Sadat was rather unknown on the political scene, he proved himself an adequate leader during his 11 years. He is most notable for his global politics, being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts in making peace with Israel. Sadat was assassinated in 1981, leaving power in the hands of Hosni Mubarak.

Hosni Mubarak

In October of 1981, Mubarak assumed his position as the fourth President of Egypt and chairman of the National Democratic Party. He stands as the longest ruling president, surviving several assassination attempts and partaking in two wars, the gulf and Iraq. Nasser’s original Marxist republic has lasted over half a century, but now Egypt is calling for a new era. Mubarak was ousted and forced to resign in early 2011, transferring authority to the Supreme Council of Armed Forces. So far, there is no sign of what Egypt’s government will become.