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Delhi, Cairo and India’s expanding coalition with Arab moderates:
Delhi’s decision to build a strategic partnership with Cairo is rooted in a recognition of the enduring salience of Egypt as a pivotal state sitting at the crossroads of Middle East, Africa and Europe with the capacity to influence political outcomes in multiple fronts. (1/9)
Beyond the bilateral, the renewed engagement with Egypt is also about consolidating India’s new coalition with moderate Sunni states in the Middle East, including Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates that are eager to counter violent religious extremism. (2/9)
The strategy to join the coalition of moderate Sunni states is very different from Delhi’s past policies and is in tune with the shifting regional realities. Delhi's effort today is to align India’s regional diplomatic priorities closer to India’s core interests. (3/9)
Delhi’s strategic partnership with Cairo also opens the door for a larger Indian role in the region which is trying to diversify its partnerships away from the traditional dependence on the US that is focused on the Pacific after costly wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. (4/9)
India’s new outreach to Egypt ends the imbalance in Delhi's Middle East policy that tended to focus on the Gulf in recent years. As it turns out, Egypt is an important strategic partner for the Gulf Arabs and reinforces India's regional effort. (5/9)
Egypt and the Gulf Arabs have long shared concerns about Iran’s destabilisation of the region. After the Arab Spring, Egypt and the Gulf Arabs have also come together to confront Sunni extremist forces in the region backed by Turkey and Qatar. (6/9)
Egypt, UAE and Saudi Arabia are now actively countering extremism and the narratives of the radical Islamists. While Egypt has long been an inclusive society, the traditionally conservative UAE and Saudi Arabia are pursuing social reform and promoting religious tolerance. (7/9)
Extremist ideas imported from Middle East had destabilised South Asia in recent decades. India, therefore, has a big stake in strengthening the coalition of moderate Arab Sunni states that could help promote peace and stability in both the Middle East and South Asia. (8/9)
For a full analysis see my column RAJA MANDALA in today's @indianExpress (9/9) indianexpress.com
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