India's multifaceted outreach on Egypt
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid a state visit to Egypt on 24-25 June, during which he held talks with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly. Modi and Al-Sisi declared the elevation of India-Egypt relations to the level of strategic partnership. During his visit, Modi also received Egypt's highest civilian honour Order of the Nile from Al-Sisi.
Modi's visit to Egypt is important from several perspectives. India has been making positive overtures towards Egypt for the past several years. India and Egypt, two civilisational states, were once close partners. Both were colonised by the British and therefore shared a common anti-colonial vision. When both gained independence, they became part of the Non-Aligned Movement which chose not to ally with either the US-led capitalist bloc or the USSR-led communist bloc, but maintained cordial relations with all.
The India-Egypt bonhomie that began in the 1950s under the leadership of Jawaharlal Nehru and Gamel Abdel Nasser ended in the late 1970s when Egypt reconciled with Israel and India focused more on the Gulf countries for energy security.
Since the last decade, India has once again readjusted its focus on Egypt. In the midst of emerging geopolitics, Egypt is a crucial country for India. Egypt's location as an African, Arab and Mediterranean country makes its engagement strategically important for India. The reason is that in the last decade, India's interactions with the Arab world and African countries have grown. Through Egypt, India could expand its reach into the Mediterranean region, as Egypt connects the Indian Ocean with the Mediterranean Sea.
The recent acceleration of India-Egypt relations is facilitated by frequent high-level visits from both sides. In 2022, India's Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and External Affairs Minister Dr S. Jaishankar visited Egypt. On India's Republic Day on January 26 this year, Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi was the chief guest at the Republic Day Parade. Al-Sisi is scheduled to visit India again in September this year to attend the G20 Summit. Egypt is one of the countries invited to the G20 Summit under India's presidency this year.
Defence has become an important area of cooperation between India and Egypt. Cooperation includes joint exercises between the Armed Forces of the two countries, ship visits to each other's ports, joint training programmes and defence production. Bilateral defence ties received a boost in 2022 during a visit to Egypt by Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. The two countries agreed to enhance defence ties by engaging in joint defence technology production, transfer and localisation. Cairo also expressed interest in acquiring India's Tejas aircraft. Egypt is already one of the 42 countries to which India exports its defence products.
In addition to defence cooperation, India is also expected to gain an important economic base in Egypt. Egypt is considering offering a special land area to Indian companies in the Suez Canal Economic Zone to attract Indian investment. On the sidelines of Modi's visit to Cairo, a delegation from the Suez Canal Economic Zone led by its chairman Waleid Gamal Eldien visited New Delhi to discuss possible investment opportunities in sectors such as green hydrogen, renewable energy and infrastructure. By investing in the strategically located Suez Canal Economic Zone, India would have access to a vital international maritime trade route connecting Europe, East and North Africa with Asia.
Modi also rekindled the civilisational factor in India-Egypt relations. Modi visited Egypt's historic Al-Hakim Mosque in Cairo. This mosque was built by the Fatimids in the 11th century. Modi also met members of the Dawoodi Bohra community. This community has its origins in the Fatimids of Egypt and also has a significant presence in India. Modi personally enjoys very close ties with the Dawoodi Bohra community in India since long. Modi's meeting with Dawoodi Bohras also counters the narrative that the Muslim minority is discriminated against in India. This sends a strong message to the whole world in general and Muslim countries in particular about the Modi government's approach towards Muslims in India.
Modi travelled to Egypt on his way back from a successful state visit to the US. This can be interpreted as India's diplomatic balancing act, as Egypt has shown an inclination towards China and Russia. Egypt also applied for BRICS membership (a grouping of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) and received Russia's backing. Countries committed to BRICS favour replacing the US dollar as the currency of exchange, a clear anti-US move.
However, India's approach to Egypt should be seen independently of pro- and anti-US positions in global politics. The outreach to Egypt is part of India's increasing focus on Africa, which has received less attention in India's foreign policy. Moreover, India's economic counter-attack on China is always based on offering a constructive alternative. India emphasises working on mutually beneficial projects as opposed to China's debt diplomacy initiatives. India is following the same pattern with Egypt, which is facing economic difficulties at the moment. Strategically, closer ties with Egypt would also be an important step for India to monitor China's activities, particularly through its naval base in Djibouti.
India is reconnecting with Egypt. Frequent engagements between the two countries are necessary to continue the momentum gained over the past decade.
(Niranjan Marjani is an independent political analyst and researcher from Vadodara, India specialising in international relations and geopolitics. His areas of work are Indian foreign policy, South Asia, Southeast Asia, the Indo-Pacific region, Central Asia and the Middle East. He contributes articles to Indian and international publications. He is a consulting editor of The Kootneeti Español, an Indian magazine on international relations published in Spanish. He also consults as a political risk analyst to Indian and foreign corporate entities).
Twitter: @NiranjanMarjani