The unity of the Arab world is the raison d’être of the Arab League. At this time of growing political divisions in some parts of the region, that unity has never been more essential.
By being united, Arab leaders can shape a region that makes the most of its enormous potential and contributes to global peace and security. There are high hopes that Syria will return to the Arab fold and that Sudan will restore peace and security soon.
The Arab region has had enough of war and disputes. It is high time for the Arab peoples to realise their dreams and aspire to a better future.
To that end, the Arab League held a meeting last Sunday at the level of foreign ministers under the leadership of Egypt, to defuse disputes in the Arab region.
Arab foreign ministers voted to allow Syria to rejoin the Arab League, taking a crucial step toward ending the country’s international ostracism.
Syria’s re-admission into the Arab league after more than a decade of being suspended is no longer a choice, but a necessity for confronting challenges besetting the Arab world.
The vote to re-instate Syria has come as part of Egypt’s foreign diplomacy, which focuses on resolving conflict through dialogue and peaceful means, rather than military solutions which only result in loss for everyone.
Egypt’s leadership believes in the importance of supporting the national state and its legitimate institutions as well as rejecting all forms of armed grouping that exacerbate tensions and disrupt nations.
Characterised by credibility, respect and impartiality, Egyptian foreign policy has contributed largely to bringing Syria back into the Arab league. It is the beginning of the end to foreign intervention in Syria which only worsened the crisis there, posing a threat to the security and stability of the whole Arab region.
Syria’s return to the Arab fold will also help boost the investment climate in the region.
All Arab nations must reconcile with the fact that no solution for the crisis in Syria is possible without its involvement with its Arab partners. Now Damascus is more open and committed to ending all internal conflicts and splits which have inflicted immense suffering on the Syrian people.
Egyptian diplomacy has also had a strong presence in Sudan’s ongoing unrest, starting with its great efforts to evacuate Egyptians safely from there, assisting other countries to evacuate their citizens and to urging the two conflicting parties – the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Force (RSF) – to stop fighting.
Egypt has also been communicating with regional and international forces to extend the truce between the two warring parties in Sudan and reach a political solution that safeguards the nation and its people.
Egypt welcomed the start of preliminary talks between representatives from the Sudanese Armed forces and the RSF in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, lauding regional and international efforts to halt the fighting between rival factions in Sudan and to sit down to dialogue.
Within this framework, Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukri recently visited Chad and South Sudan to co-ordinate efforts for a ceasefire in Sudan and encourage the start of dialogue between the warring sides. Egypt has received around 60,000 Sudanese people since fighting erupted in Sudan.
Egyptian diplomacy is a model for dealing quietly and wisely with Arab crises to protect Arab national security.
Mohamed Fahmy is the editor-in-chief of The Egyptian Gazette and the Egyptian Mail newspapers
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