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First Round of Egyptian-European Dialogue on Migration Kicks off in Cairo

Egypt's President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi. (Reuters)
Egypt's President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi. (Reuters)
    Cairo - Sawsan Abu Hussein, Nabil Helmi and Abdullah Mustafa
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First Round of Egyptian-European Dialogue on Migration Kicks off in Cairo

Egypt's President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi. (Reuters)
Egypt's President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi. (Reuters)

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry announced on Saturday the start of dialogue on migration between Egypt and the European Union, within efforts to strengthen the EU-funded agreement to tackle the causes of illegal immigration.

In this regard, Egyptian President Abdul Fattah el-Sisi met with EU Commissioner for Migration, Citizenship and Home Affairs Dimitris Avramopoulos. Discussions tackled Egypt's measures to combat illegal migration, which have contributed significantly to the reduction of trans-Mediterranean migration, as not a single case has been recorded in Egypt since 2016.

Ambassador Bassam Radi, spokesman for the Egyptian presidency, said that Sisi underlined his country's interest in promoting its relations with the EU in various fields, including the fight against illegal immigration.

He added that the elimination and control of this phenomenon would not be achieved solely through security measures, but by resolving existing crises and improving people's living standards, highlighting the EU's important role in this context.

Egypt reached an agreement with the EU in October to provide €60 million in non-refundable funding for a series of development projects to address the root causes of migration and to strengthen the national institutional capacity on migration issues and human trafficking, within the framework of the European Emergency Trust Fund for Africa.

Radi quoted Avramopoulos as saying that Egypt was one of the most important EU partners in the Middle East.

"In light of Egypt's considerable regional weight, the European Union recognizes the role assumed by President Sisi in protecting the country from many disturbances, which in turn helped save the entire Middle East region, thus preserving the security of the Mediterranean and Europe," the EU commissioner said.

Shoukri and Avramopoulos agreed to "launch the first round of the Egyptian-European High-level Institutional Dialogue on Migration as the first forum for constructive interaction and exchange of experiences and visions between the two parties in this field."

"The meeting falls within the framework of rapprochement and the growing momentum in the relations between the two sides, especially after the Egyptian-European Council was held in Brussels in July, as well as successive visits of senior EU officials to Cairo, reflecting the increasing recognition of the strategic nature of the Egyptian-European partnership," Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ahmed Abu Zeid said.

Egyptian Ambassador to Brussels Khaled al-Baqali told Asharq Al-Awsat that cooperation between the two sides has already begun, highlighting EU assistance to create jobs in Egypt for the areas from which illegal immigration is exported.

On a different note, Sisi met on Saturday with French Defense Minister Florence Barley. The Egyptian presidency said the meeting focused on military and security cooperation, as well as the continuous coordination between the two sides on the challenges facing the Middle East.

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Arab World

How Did Iraq Survive ‘Existential Threat More Dangerous than ISIS’?

Iraqi sheikhs participate in a solidarity demonstration with Iran on a road leading to the Green Zone, where the US Embassy is located in Baghdad (AP). 
Iraqi sheikhs participate in a solidarity demonstration with Iran on a road leading to the Green Zone, where the US Embassy is located in Baghdad (AP). 
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How Did Iraq Survive ‘Existential Threat More Dangerous than ISIS’?

Iraqi sheikhs participate in a solidarity demonstration with Iran on a road leading to the Green Zone, where the US Embassy is located in Baghdad (AP). 
Iraqi sheikhs participate in a solidarity demonstration with Iran on a road leading to the Green Zone, where the US Embassy is located in Baghdad (AP). 

Diplomatic sources in Baghdad revealed to Asharq Al-Awsat that Iraqi authorities were deeply concerned about sliding into the Israeli-Iranian war, which they considered “an existential threat to Iraq even more dangerous than that posed by ISIS when it overran a third of the country’s territory.”

The sources explained that “ISIS was a foreign body that inevitably had to be expelled by the Iraqi entity, especially given the international and regional support Baghdad enjoyed in confronting it... but the war (with Israel) threatened Iraq’s unity.”

They described this “existential threat” as follows:

-When the war broke out, Baghdad received messages from Israel, conveyed via Azerbaijan and other channels, stating that Israel would carry out “harsh and painful” strikes in response to any attacks launched against it from Iraqi territory. The messages held the Iraqi authorities responsible for any such attacks originating from their soil.

-Washington shifted from the language of prior advice to direct warnings, highlighting the grave consequences that could result from any attacks carried out by Iran-aligned factions.

-Iraqi authorities feared what they described as a “disaster scenario”: that Iraqi factions would launch attacks on Israel, prompting Israel to retaliate with a wave of assassinations similar to those it conducted against Hezbollah leaders in Lebanon or Iranian generals and scientists at the start of the war.

-The sources noted that delivering painful blows to these factions would inevitably inflame the Shiite street, potentially pushing the religious authority to take a strong stance. At that point, the crisis could take on the character of a Shiite confrontation with Israel.

-This scenario raised fears that other Iraqi components would then blame the Shiite component for dragging Iraq into a war that could have been avoided. In such circumstances, the divergence in choices between the Shiite and Sunni communities could resurface, reviving the threat to Iraq’s unity.

-Another risk was the possibility that the Kurds would declare that the Iraqi government was acting as if it only represented one component, and that the country was exhausted by wars, prompting the Kurdish region to prefer distancing itself from Baghdad to avoid being drawn into unwanted conflicts.

-Mohammed Shia Al Sudani’s government acted with a mix of firmness and prudence. It informed the factions it would not tolerate any attempt to drag the country into a conflict threatening its unity, while on the other hand keeping its channels open with regional and international powers, especially the US.

-Iraqi authorities also benefited from the position of Iranian authorities, who did not encourage the factions to engage in the war but instead urged them to remain calm. Some observers believed that Iran did not want to risk its relations with Iraq after losing Syria.

-Another significant factor was the factions’ realization that the war exceeded their capabilities, especially in light of what Hezbollah faced in Lebanon and the Israeli penetrations inside Iran itself, which demonstrated that Israel possessed precise intelligence on hostile organizations and was able to reach its targets thanks to its technological superiority and these infiltrations.

-The sources indicated that despite all the pressure and efforts, “rogue groups” tried to prepare three attacks, but the authorities succeeded in thwarting them before they were carried out.

The sources estimated that Iran suffered a deep wound because Israel moved the battle onto Iranian soil and encouraged the US to target its nuclear facilities. They did not rule out another round of fighting “if Iran does not make the necessary concessions on the nuclear issue.”