Our Lobby in Egypt
As you know, the Foreign Minister of our country has made an official visit to Cairo. How important is this visit?
This visit is of special importance. The following reasons can be named for the importance of this trip:
First, Egypt has a special status in the Islamic and Arab world. The four countries of Iran, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey are the most important players in the world of Islam and positive developments, friendly relations, and convergence between these countries will lead to developments in the world of Islam and the promotion of the role of this bloc in international relations and their impact on regional and world crises.
The second reason is the developments created due to the popular uprising and downfall of the political system in Cairo. Obviously, following the overthrow of Mubarak, strategic developments have taken place in Egypt, even though this country has not yet found its political stability due to domestic problems and the influence of regional and international players and it is still passing the transition period. Salehi's trip at this juncture can be very important. Today's Egypt has stronger relations with Saudi Arabia and Turkey compared with Iran and relations between the two countries must be developed. This need, two years after the downfall of the totalitarian regime of Hosni Mubarak, is felt more than ever.
The third point in this relation is the new political system of Egypt. Despite the differences that we might now have with the governing method of Mohammad Morsi and his supporting party, the Muslim Brotherhood, this party is the oldest and most organized political establishment in the Arab countries. The developments called the Arab Spring have, more than ever before, illustrated the role and status of the Muslim Brotherhood in the region. Of course, today's Muslim Brotherhood is completely different from what we have read about in their history and this powerful and influential party has, since many years ago, attempted to adjust itself with global developments and has gained much success in some countries like Turkey. In my opinion, our political and diplomatic system must comprehend today's realities of the Muslim Brotherhood and deal with them on the basis of their present beliefs and ideologies. Nevertheless, considering the Sunni majority population of today's Egypt, it is the closest country to us who claims to uphold a government based on religious values. This issue, more than any other issue, necessitates the establishment of balanced relations and respect of the viewpoints and governing methods of each other.
How do you assess the present Iran-Egypt relations? Can this visit be considered as the basis for the establishment of diplomatic relations?
It is obvious that relations between Iran and Egypt are not at Iran's expected level. The enthusiasm which our country showed after Mubarak's downfall to normalize relations between the two countries and the efforts made in this regard did not reach a desirable result. It seems that the incorrect analysis of Iran's officials with regard to the Arab developments, in general, and the uprising of the people of Egypt, in particular, was the main reason behind these hasty diplomatic measures.
As I mentioned in the previous response, today's Egypt, despite its fundamental differences with the Mubarak regime, has its own special outlook on the region and the world. The new Egypt has inherited numerous political and economic problems and international commitments that not only Morsi, but rather no other person acting as the president of Egypt, would be able to solve in the short run. Furthermore, Morsi was able to defeat Mr. Shafiq with a marginal difference in the number of votes, even though Shafiq was the last prime minister of the Mubarak regime and this was a negative point in winning the votes of the people who had protested against Mubarak's totalitarian regime. Only 30% of the eligible voters participated in the constitutional referendum and less than 64% of them cast their positive votes. It is clear that Morsi is confronted with problems and obstacles in making political decisions.
With regard to the issue of the establishment of relations with Iran, besides domestic problems, Morsi is also faced with Egypt’s commitments regarding its regional supporting countries. At the present time, the world of Islam is completely bipolar and these issues will certainly affect any decision made by Egypt.
On the other hand, present relations between Iran and the world and even with regional and neighboring countries, which unfortunately are in their worst state since the victory of the Islamic Revolution, could impact Egypt's decision.
Nevertheless, I hope that Mr. Salehi and the Foreign Ministry can use all of its existing capacities to take steps towards normalizing relations between the two countries.
Besides meeting with the President and the Foreign Minister of Egypt, Mr. Salehi has also visited non-official personalities including the Al-Azhar Grand Sheikh, the Muslim Brotherhood’s Supreme Guide and a number of intellectuals and elites. How close, in your opinion, is the social and intellectual atmosphere of Iran and Egypt?
Iran's unofficial relations with Egypt are much closer than the political relations between the two countries. Although the personalities and organizations which you named look at the politicians in making their decisions but with regard to Iran, they do not have the same concerns as the politicians. Even during the Hosni Mubarak regime, the officials who visited Egypt had no problems meeting religious personalities.
In criticizing Iran's diplomacy with regard to Egypt following Mubarak's downfall, one of the important points neglected by Iran was the personalities and organizations which can act as powerful lobbies for Iran. Egypt is a pluralist society and after the overthrow of the Mubarak regime, the social and political forces which were under the security watch of Mubarak's authoritarian regime, were liberated and are effective in Egypt’s domestic political issues. Therefore, Salehi's decision to meet with these personalities is totally necessary and in the interest of our country. Of course, Mr. Salehi must also consider the fact that the secular forces and nationalist personalities of Egypt are elements that are to be reckoned with.
It is said that this trip is made within the framework of Morsi's plan and simultaneous with the Islamic Conference Summit in Mecca to find a solution for the crisis in Syria. A potential meeting with Lakhdar Brahimi is another item on Salehi's agenda. Can this trip, in your opinion, help find a solution to the present crisis in Syria? How close are Iran and Egypt's views with regard to the issue of Syria? Is there a possibility of cooperation between Iran and Egypt in this regard?
It can be said that the views of Iran and Egypt with regard to the issue of Syria, if not contradictory, have rooted differences. The reason is Mr. Morsi's statements in the Tehran NAM Summit, the translation of which was intentionally or unintentionally changed which also caused problems. It might be said that those statements at that time were made more for propaganda, which I do not completely deny, but this does not mean that the two countries have similar views. The joint initiative of the four countries of Iran, Egypt, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia, despite several meetings, was not fruitful.
I have doubts about the ability of Mr. Salehi's visit in finding a solution for the present crisis in Syria. Whether we like it or not, the international dimensions of the Syrian crisis have reduced the capacities of the regional countries in solving this problem, unless Iran and Egypt can encourage or force Assad to honorably leave power when it is in the interest of the Syrian people. Of course it is obvious that this measure should carefully be taken so that the people of Syria are prevented from falling in the well of civil and ethnic war, which would be worse than the present situation, after getting rid of Assad and the Baath Party. Nevertheless, Assad’s speech on Sunday showed that there is no clear horizon right now for this crisis. Thus, it is not clear how Iran and Egypt can cooperate with each other in this regard.