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Resolving the Palestinian issue is crucial for IMEC connectivity project: Egyptian minister
Abdelatty said Egypt sees India and the US among the regional and international players that should have greater involvement in the Gaza peace plan
NEW DELHI: Resolving the Palestinian issue is key to Israel normalising its relations with Arab states and the success of connectivity projects such as the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC), Egyptian foreign minister Badr Abdelatty said on Friday.
Egypt, which had a key role in negotiations that led to the US-backed Gaza peace plan, sees India among regional and international players that can help implement the agreement between Israel and Hamas, Abdelatty told a group of reporters at the conclusion of his visit to New Delhi for the first India-Egypt strategic dialogue.
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The Gaza peace plan, which resulted in a ceasefire and the exchange of hostages held by Hamas for prisoners in Israeli detention, and the Palestinian issue figured in Abdelatty’s talks with external affairs minister S Jaishankar on Thursday. While acknowledging US President Donald Trump’s peace plan as the “only game in town”, Abdelatty said a future Palestinian state with Gaza and the West Bank as its integral parts is the only solution that can ensure lasting peace and “security for Israel and the whole region”.
“Everything about normalisation [between Israel and Arab states], about connectivity, stopped for a single reason. You cannot talk about normalisation without solving the core of the conflict in the region, which is the Palestinian question,” he said, referring to the hostilities triggered by the terror attacks by Hamas in October 2023.
“You cannot replace the final settlement of the Palestinian cause with normalisation,” he said. “Even if Israel managed to have normalisation with all Arab and Muslim countries, that will not bring peace and stability to the region. The only way to bring peace and stability is to give the Palestinians their right to have their own independent state.”
Egypt has been eyeing a role in IMEC, which was finalised during India’s presidency of the G20 in September 2023 but has largely been in limbo due to the hostilities that erupted in Gaza about a month later. Abdelatty acknowledged the importance of IMEC but said the sort of escalation witnessed over the past two years could hinder cooperation and regional connectivity.
“What we are saying is that it is important to have a conducive environment for such projects to evolve. We discussed IMEC with our Indian friends and are in favour of all projects of connectivity because Egypt is a hub. Egypt, with its strategic location, can be part of all connectivity projects,” he said.
“We are open to joining any connectivity projects but we have to bear in mind that connectivity is very important as part of a final settlement of the Palestinian cause.”
Egypt sees India and the US among the regional and international players that should have greater involvement in the Gaza peace plan as this is the “only guarantee for making sure that [Israel and Hamas] will implement and honour their commitments according to the Sharm el-Sheikh agreement”, Abdelatty said.
While Prime Minister Narendra Modi was invited by Egypt to the Sharm el-Sheikh Peace Summit this week, he was unable to attend and India was represented by minister of state for external affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh. The summit resulted in the signing of a ceasefire deal by the US, Egypt, Qatar and Turkiye.
“The role of India is important and we extended the invitation [for the peace summit]. And we will continue our efforts,” Abdelatty said.
Egypt believes the US and Trump are the “only guarantee” for implementing the Gaza peace plan. Israel and Hamas are in the final stages of implementing the first phase of the peace plan and the next step will be the passing of a resolution by the UN Security Council to give legitimacy to a proposed International Stabilisation Force (ISF), Abdelatty said.
The resolution will lay out the mission and mandate of the ISF, and there has been agreement on a 15-member Palestinian administrative committee to run the daily life of Palestinians, including providing basic services for a transitional period “till we empower the Palestinian Authority to be deployed”, he said.
