OE Watch Commentary: In 2014, the leaders of Egypt and Cyprus ratified a bilateral agreement signed the year before, which delimited the two countries’ Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) in the Mediterranean Sea. The agreement was largely motivated by Egypt’s desire to exploit the massive offshore natural gas deposits within its EEZ in the “Levant Basin,” the eastern corner of the Mediterranean Sea. The first accompanying article, from the Qatari daily al-Araby al-Jadid, explains how before Abdel Fattah Sisi gained power in 2013, the Egyptian government had preferred to avoid delimiting the EEZs for various reasons. Sisi, in contrast, has put securing these resources atop his list of priorities, “[and ex-president Hosni] Mubarak’s complex calculus visa-vis Turkey and Israel were not part of his calculus; he treated the first as a regional adversary after 2013 and has had no issues collaborating with the second in various matters of politics, strategy and security.”
Sisi has overseen a major expansion of Egyptian military power over the past few years, particularly its naval capabilities. According to the second accompanying passage, from the influential Saudi daily al-Hayat, this military expansion and modernization is tailored to protect Egyptian economic interests in the Mediterranean.
Recently, Turkey began challenging the political order Egypt seeks to create in the Levant Basin. Turkey does not recognize the Nicosia-based Cypriot government and therefore does not recognize the EEZs established in the Cyprus-Egypt agreement. In February 2017, Turkey’s foreign minister stated that his country would begin exploring for offshore gas in areas claimed by Cyprus. The Egyptian Foreign Ministry responded with oblique warnings against attempts to infringe on Egypt’s sovereign rights. On 13 February, Turkish warships prevented a commercial drill ship from entering a maritime zone licensed by the Cypriot government.
This is all taking place as the Egyptian military carries out Operation Sinai 2018, a massive nationwide military campaign showcasing many of the new weapons systems purchased during the Sisi era. The operation included the mobilization of Egypt’s two Mistral-class helicopter carriers and other naval assets, and according to a retired Egyptian officer cited in the third accompanying article, the mobilizations “are tantamount to a message to anyone seeking to challenge Egyptian investments and economic interests in the Mediterranean, in particular Turkey.” The article, from the Saudi daily al-Sharq al-Awsat, also highlights Turkish unease with the recent “Medusa 5” naval-aerial military exercises carried out by Egypt and Greece last year. End OE Watch Commentary (Winter)
In 2015 and 2016, many Egyptians asked themselves about the push to modernize the military’s various weapons systems, leading to enormous cost in an already strained budget and amidst economic conditions in which all, the rich included, were suffering. Many questions were raised at the time, including why the country sought to own two naval carriers and submarines while at the same time negotiations loans of billions of dollars from the IMF and other financial institutions. The answer to this question would come later, as Egypt would have been unable to secure economic interests being monitored by the authorities in the near-term without modernizing the military, in particular the navy…
A reliable Egyptian source told al-Hayat that the military “committed to securing the economic zone along the Mediterranean coastline after the forces experienced and responded to a ‘provocation’ there.” Last month, President Abdel Fattah Sisi said that “the military is securing gas fields in the Mediterranean.” He asked: “Would someone come to provoke us if we did not have the power to confront them?” He then answered: “Has anyone tried to provoked us?… Yes, but we were ready with our full force.”
The source told al-Hayat that the development of the naval forces was necessary before announcing that gas had been discovered in the Mediterranean, adding: “No international drilling company would come before being assured that the finds would be secured so that their investments would not be lost.” In the final months of last year, Egypt finished modernizing the Alexandria Naval Base and carried out the “Battle of the Masts” naval exercises, which foreign media was allowed to witness and which included exercises to “secure a vital naval target and shooting artillery at a surface target”…
The source added that “ for the naval forces to reach 200 kilometers from the coast these weapons and equipment were necessary and a fundamental development of naval infrastructure. This made it possible to quickly reach the gas fields in the Economic Zone, especially in light of regional interactions.” Late last year, Egypt opened its first comprehensive military base in Marsa Matrouh, on the Mediterranean coast. It includes units from all the main and secondary branches of the armed forces. The developments in the navy are primarily focused on the Northern Fleet, which points to the prioritization of securing economic interests in the Mediterranean.”