Egypt’s former foreign minister Nabil Fahmy described the Egyptian-US relations as “vital” throughout modern history, citing Cairo's pioneering role at the regional level and Washington's leadership at the global level.
His remarks came during the signing ceremony of his book dubbed “Epicenter of Events…Egypt’s Diplomacy in War, Peace and Transition” at the American University in Cairo, where he currently serves as the Dean of School of International Affairs and Public Policies.
Speakers at the event included Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, former secretary- general of the Arab League and former Egyptian foreign minister Amr Moussa, Director of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina Mostafa El- Feki, Chairman and Founder of Dar El Shorouk Ibrahim al-Moallem, AUC President Ahmad Dallal, and other senior diplomatic figures.
His book covers an Egyptian diplomatic era, with its regional and global interactions over four decades of his public service in the offices of the Egyptian Presidency as a career diplomat.
He served as policy advisor to the Foreign Minister, ambassador to Japan, and was appointed as ambassador to the US for nine years before leading Egypt’s foreign policy as foreign minister in 2013-2014.
Fahmy said he visited Moscow in 2013 and met his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov at the time and told him that Cairo does not intend to replace the US with Russia but rather aims to expand the circle of its international partners and diversify its options to preserve the sovereignty of Egypt’s decisions.
He stressed that “misunderstanding” in relations with major powers is more critical than differences in positions.
Commenting on the peace process, Fahmy said the Palestinian cause is no longer on the international community’s agenda, even before the Russian war on Ukraine.
He called for engaging multiple parties in sponsoring the global peace process, urging Palestinian parties to unite and learn a lesson from the Israelis who put aside their fundamental differences and united to topple Benjamin Netanyahu and keep him from forming a government.
