Solid base for Arab integration

The leaders of the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Iraq and Jordan met in Egypt on Monday in a five-party Arab summit that obviously aims at boosting inter-Arab coordination in various economic and security issues in light of regional and global developments.

President Abdel Fattah El Sisi had earlier received Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed on his first official visit to Egypt since assuming office as President of the UAE in May in the New Alamein City on the Mediterranean coast. According to presidency spokesman statement, the meeting focused on consolidating the strategic partnership between the two countries. The two leaders also exchanged views on joint Arab action in face of present-day challenges.

In fact, coordination among Arab countries has of late become a major feature of regional Arab policies whereby high-profile regular meetings are held in one Arab capital or another.

For instance, the Jordanian capital Amman hosted in March a quadruple meeting with leaders of Egypt, the UAE, Jordan and Iraq attending. And in June Egypt, the UAE and Jordan launched the Integrated Industrial Partnership Initiative in Abu Dhabi. Meanwhile, Egypt, Jordan and Iraq have been working in the past three years on boosting their trilateral co-operation especially in the field of power.

Monday’s meeting was meant to follow up on previously discussed issues particularly the repercussions of the war in Ukraine on the Arab World in terms of food and energy, the Palestinian issue, the situation in the politically-turbulent Iraq, Libya and Yemen and the latest developments regarding the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam dispute. The summit also dealt with the impact of a likely US-Iran nuclear deal on the region.

The summit is not the first of its kind in recent months. And it indeed manifests a political will on the part of the Arab countries to close ranks with regards to diverse security and economic related issues, which would eventually affect stability and development of the entire region.

The Arab leaders are aware more than ever of the significance of unifying their stands on certain issues, as the only way to protect the interest of the region at such a critical time in which the entire world is suffering from the impact of war, economic stagnation and climate change.

Joint Arab action was a missing virtue at a certain point in the modern history of the region. But Egypt in its endeavor to regain its leading role after years of unrest triggered by the 2011 Revolution managed to put a solid base for Arab integration.