19/12/2015
14331 times read
19/12/2015
14331 times read
![Ahmed Al-Jarallah – Editor-in-Chief, the Arab Times](https://www.arabtimesonline.com/news/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/Ahmed-Al-Jarallah-193x300.jpg)
THE Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has reasserted that the GCC countries and Egypt share the same destiny. The relationship with Cairo is on a firm footing and not subjected to political fluctuations.
This fact is easily understood by the royal instructions issued by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz to increase Saudi investments in Egypt to 30 billion riyals.
This is in addition to the increasing number of Saudi ships transiting the Suez Canal and providing Cairo its oil needs for five years.
It is an indisputable fact that this issue will not stop at the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, since all GCC countries are expected to increase their investments in Cairo and their deposits in the Egyptian Central Bank.
These economic decisions have their political connotations. These decision emphasize the trust between these nations and dispel rumors about rifts in Gulf-Egyptian relations, especially we are aware that during the past phase we witnessed some tepidity in that relationship.
These royal instructions prove that the rumors which have been spread by the media are the handiwork of the ‘Brotherhood Movement’ – the lone loser in the four-year-old cat and mouse game.
It is no secret that the Brotherhood movement has been making tremendous efforts to put obstacles in the path of Egyptian economic revival to cunningly utilize ‘the funds’ for its benefit.
Nonetheless, ‘these people’ forget the fact that Egypt is the strategic depth of the GCC countries and Cairo has carved for itself a distinguished place in the heart of GCC.
There is no doubt that this big initiative requires the Egyptian leadership to make the business atmosphere conducive for the GCC private sector to pump in more capital.
This can be done by overhauling the investment laws in line with international standards because any joint project will bring mutual benefits for Egypt and GCC countries. Moreover, once the investment laws are overhauled, the number of projects and investments will continue to grow non-stop.
According to economic experts, Egypt in 2020 will be the biggest investment base for Arabs if Cairo continues the march forward in the same direction by implementing gigantic projects.
This will give Egypt the opportunity to rub shoulders with big world economies to grow side by side its approximately 94 million people which will necessitate expansion of services and industries.
This can be achieved only with the help of big financial partnerships between the Egyptian and non-Egyptian capitals.
Finally, we dare say that any attempts to sow seeds of distrust between GCC countries are useless because of the strategic depth of these countries.
Moreover, the historical verdict given by 45 million Egyptians on June 30, 2013 means you cannot turn the clock backwards. Moreover, neither the Brotherhood nor any other adventurous power can destroy the rock-solid relationship between Egypt and the GCC States.
By Ahmad Al-Jarallah
Editor-in-Chief, the Arab Times