GS Paper 2
Syllabus: International Relations
Source: IE
Direction: The article highlights India-Egypt relations and discusses how the Republic Day chief guest is chosen by India.
Context: This is the first time that an Egyptian President (Abdel Fattah El-Sisi) has been invited as chief guest for the Republic Day celebrations in India.
India-Egypt relations:
History:
- India and Egypt share close political understanding based on a long history of cooperation in bilateral, regional and global issues.
- Diplomatic relations were established on August 18, 1947 (completed 75 years in 2022).
- India’s PM Jawaharlal Nehru and Egypt’s President Gamal Abdel Nasser signed the Friendship Treaty between the two countries, and they were key to forming the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM in 1961) along with Yugoslav President Josip Broz Tito.
- High-level exchanges with Egypt continued post 2011 Egyptian Revolution and the new government led by President (Sisi) took over in 2014.
- When the Egyptian President paid a State visit to India in 2016, a joint statement was issued, outlining the three pillars–
- Political-security cooperation,
- Economic engagement and scientific collaboration and
- Cultural and people-people ties as the basis of a new partnership for a new era.
The recent engagements:
- India has invited Egypt as a special guest for the G-20 summit.
- Exercise Cyclone-I – first ever exercise between Indian Army and Egyptian Army was held in Jaisalmer recently.
- India and Egypt agreed to elevate their bilateral ties to a “Strategic Partnership” covering political, security, defence, energy, and economic aspects.
What’s the state of bilateral trade relations?
- Egypt has traditionally been one of India’s most important trading partners in Africa, as they have had a bilateral trade agreement since 1978 based on the most-favoured nation clause.
- The bilateral trade has increased more than five times (USD 26 billion in 2021-22 – a 75% increase from FY 2020-2021) in the past 10 years.
Other areas of cooperation:
- Agriculture: Egypt is currently facing a shortage of food grains as its major sources were the warring Ukraine and Russia. In May last year, India- which had put a ban on the sale of wheat, allowed the export of 61,000 tonnes of wheat to Egypt.
- Cyber security & IT
- Healthcare
- Culture
- Youth matters and Broadcasting
Importance of the Egyptian President’s present visit:
| For Egypt | For India |
| ● Egypt is facing a massive economic crisis due to depleted forex reserves.
● Egypt is eyeing more tourist footfall from India to boost forex inflows into their tourism-dependent economy. |
● India is looking at increasing investments in the country, especially in major infrastructure projects in and around the Suez Canal, and special economic zones in Alexandria and Cairo. |
| ● Egypt is interested in procuring defence equipment from India.
● A military contingent from the Egyptian Army will participate in the Republic Day parade. |
● India is planning to supply LCA Tejas, missiles like Akash, DRDO’s Smart Anti-Airfield Weapon and radars.
|
| ● Education sector: the Indian higher educational institutions are planning to set up campuses in Egypt | ● A proposal for establishing an IIT in Egypt is in the works |
| ● Egypt is viewed as a moderate Islamic voice by New Delhi since it has made an attempt over the years to play a nuanced and positive role in the 57-member Organisation of Islamic Cooperation. | ● Improving ties with Muslim-majority countries |
Source: IE
Context:
- Being invited as the chief guest at Republic Day celebrations is the highest honour a country accords in terms of protocol and the ultimate sign of friendship.
How is the Republic Day chief guest chosen?
- The process starts nearly six months in advance of the event and all kinds of considerations (political, commercial, military, and economic interests of India) are taken into account by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) before extending the invitation.
- Another factor for choosing Egypt: the association with the NAM which began in the late 1950s, early 1960s.
- The first Chief Guest of the parade in 1950 was President Sukarno of Indonesia, one of the five founding members of the NAM.
- After due consideration, the MEA seeks the approval of the Prime Minister and the President on the matter.
- The MEA does not choose one option but a list of potential candidates and discretion is of utmost importance as no formal invitation has yet been made by India.
- After a candidate is finalised, the Chief of Protocol (Protocol Division, MEA) works on the details of the programme and logistics.
What is the significance of a Republic Day invite? Highly symbolic from the Indian government’s perspective as the choice is dictated by a number of reasons – strategic and diplomatic, business interests, and international geo-politics.
Insta Links:
Crafting a unique partnership with Africa
InstaCurious:
The first ever IAF-EAF Joint Tactical Air Exercise, Dessert Warrior, was held in Egypt in 2021.
Mains Links:
Q. “If the last few decades were Asia’s growth story, the next few are expected to be Africa’s.” In the light of this statement, examine India’s influence in Africa in recent years. (UPSC 2021)
Prelims Links: (UPSC 2022)
Which one of the lakes of West Africa has become dry and turned into a desert?
-
- Lake Victoria
- Lake Faguibine
- Lake Oguta
- Lake Volta
Ans: 2
