Last Tuesday, the Egyptian capital, Cairo, welcomed Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in a visit that could hardly be described as merely traditional -or even simply protocol-driven. It was, in many respects, a visit that transcended the usual diplomatic formalities.
The timing was both significant and consequential. At a moment when profound changes are reshaping the region, Arab solidarity -particularly the bond between Arab states- has assumed an importance that stands above almost every other consideration.
Perhaps it is worth recalling, therefore, that Egyptian-Saudi relations are neither the product of any particular crisis nor confined to a single issue or file. Rather, they rest upon a long history and an intricate web of strategic interests. This year, moreover, marks a full century of diplomatic relations between Cairo and Riyadh - a milestone that serves as a reminder that the ties between the two countries extend far beyond the circumstances of the moment.
It is the accumulated political wisdom of these two major Arab states that can open the way to further solutions - solutions capable of preventing crises from escalating into protracted conflicts that exact a lasting toll on peoples’ lives and threaten their sense of security and stability.
It is hardly a novel observation to say that Riyadh and Cairo have long been looked to whenever crises engulf the region. After years of mounting instability, the Middle East now finds itself confronted by ever-deepening unrest, turbulence, and disorder, in an era in which militias have grown increasingly powerful and assertive.
Saudi Arabia has demonstrated that it is firmly on the path toward a promising and prosperous future, as evidenced by the sweeping achievements being realized under Vision 2030. The Kingdom is moving toward a transformation of profound significance - one that is already beginning to reshape the realities of the country and the lives of its people.
The official Egyptian statement issued following Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s meeting with President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi offers an illuminating indication of the priorities shared by the two countries. At its core is a clear commitment to Saudi Arabia’s stability and to the continuation of its independent and steady course, both now and in the years ahead. The two sides also appear determined to deepen the level of coordination between them in the prevailing circumstances. This carries particular significance given the strategic weight of both Cairo and Riyadh, and lends the current regional landscape an entirely different dimension.
That considerable strategic weight means that any calculation involving the Red Sea must necessarily take into account the strategic interests of these two sister states, as well as their respective geopolitical arrangements and concerns.
At the latest Saudi-Egyptian summit, it was strikingly clear that Cairo and Riyadh were speaking, on a number of highly sensitive Arab issues, with stances that were remarkably close to one another. These are issues of exceptional delicacy at the present moment, particularly in a region where numerous powers are advancing competing and often contradictory positions within the Arab world itself.
The bilateral discussions between the Crown Prince and the Egyptian President underscored the convergence of their positions on the Palestinian question and the two-state solution. They also addressed the situation in Gaza, particularly in light of the recent remarks of a racist nature made by certain members of Netanyahu’s government - and, most importantly, the future of a territory that has endured more suffering than almost anywhere else over the past three years.
The discussion also extended to areas of vulnerability within the Arab world, notably Sudan and Libya, and to the imperative of working seriously to preserve the unity of both states. This gives the visit a significance that reaches well beyond bilateral relations, pointing instead toward an effort to coordinate positions on the Arab world’s major crises. Above all, it reflects a fundamental premise: Arab national security is indivisible. It is, at its core, a single and interconnected whole, from one end of the Arab world to the other.
Looking further back into history, one can argue that the organic ties between the Arabian Peninsula and Egypt stretch back more than two millennia. The evidence can be found in the very names of cities and villages across Upper and Lower Egypt, many of which bear the names of Arab tribes whose members migrated southward and northward and ultimately made Egypt - the land of the Nile - their home.
Against this historical backdrop, what is now being asked of Riyadh and Cairo - and what the Cairo summit must surely have sought to crystallize - is not merely the preservation of their already robust relationship, but its transformation into a greater capacity for political, security, and strategic coordination across the many volatile files confronting the region today.
The broader conclusion is that what is unfolding across the Middle East and the Red Sea region constitutes a geopolitical transformation of international consequence, at a time when the maps of the world - and maritime corridors in particular - are being redrawn. Once again, geography is demonstrating its enduring power to leave an indelible mark upon the pages of history.
It is from this perspective that one may say that whenever Riyadh and Cairo come together, we are witnessing the two principal Arab powers engaging with the forces that will, in turn, help shape the position of the Arab world on the emerging global map of the years ahead.
