Egypt, Sudan conduct joint military exercises

November 20, 2020

Egypt and Sudan are conducting joint military exercises that will last until November 26, the latest indication of a strengthening of military ties between the two Nile-sharing neighbors.

Egyptian Air Force units and Saiqa (Thunderbolt) Commando forces arrived at Lieutenant General Awad Khalafallah Air Base in Merowe, north of Khartoum, to begin joint military exercises on Nov. 14, the Egyptian military said.

These first joint air maneuvers, dubbed Nile Eagles-1, are intended to strengthen joint military cooperation between the two countries and improve the ability to conduct joint air operations using various aerial weapons, according to a statement by Egyptian Army Spokesman Brig. Gen. Tamer al-Rifai.

The exercises come as tensions with Ethiopia have increased over its Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam project.

Maneuvers included joint combat operations between the Egyptian and Sudanese air forces and multi-role combat aircraft drills on both sides to carry out a series of offensive and defensive sorties on targets, while Saiqa forces carried out combat research drills and drills. relief work, Rifai’s statement said.

Hani Raslan, a Sudanese affairs expert in the Nile River Basin Studies Unit at the government-affiliated Ahram Center for Political and Strategic Studies in Cairo, told Al-Monitor over the phone that this training is a qualitative bilateral development in the Egyptian-Sudanese relations since the ouster of Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir on 11 April 2019.

Raslan added: “The general nature of relations between the two countries was tinged with tension, especially under Bashir’s rule. Although the general tension in their relations was punctuated by lull and calm in some periods, the general politics were marked by a lack of harmony, which continued even after Bashir’s ouster, which is the result of the negative image that his previous regime had established against Egypt. Today the situation has changed completely “.

Relations between the two countries became further strained during Bashir’s 30-year rule, when Sudan was home to hundreds of Muslim Brotherhood leaders who fled Egypt following the overthrow of Islamist President Mohammed Morsi in July 2013.

What bothered Egypt most was the fact that Bashir had granted Turkish President Recep Erdogan a foothold on the Red Sea coast when he signed an agreement in late December 2017 for the concession of Turkey – which is the archetype of Egypt in a wider regional conflict over political Islam – the right to build a naval dock for servicing civilian and military ships on the Sudanese Red Sea island of Suakin, near the Egyptian border. Observers then saw the move as an attempt by Turkey to establish a military base, which poses a threat to Egyptian national security. Meanwhile, the future of this deal is unknown, although it is speculated that it will be suspended since Bashir was ousted.

Raslan said: “Today, post-Bashir Sudan stands at a crossroads. There are common challenges for Egyptian and Sudanese national security. Egypt is the country most concerned about Sudan’s stability and security because it is an integral part of Egypt’s national security; instability in Sudan will be a drag on Egyptian national security. This is why Cairo wishes to follow the political process in Sudan and support all opportunities for peace and stability, as well as increase military cooperation between the two countries. ”

He added: “There are common problems between the two countries relating to the waters of the Nile and the Renaissance dam of Greater Ethiopia, and others relating to the safety of the Red Sea and the situation in Libya.”

On October 31, the Egyptian Army Chief of Staff, Lieutenant General Mohamed Farid, and a high-ranking military delegation visited Sudan to discuss ways to improve military and security cooperation between the two countries.

During the visit, Farid met with the Sudanese Armed Forces Chief of Staff, Lieutenant General Mohammed Othman al-Hussein, and Sudanese Defense Minister Major General Yassin Ibrahim. The two sides agreed to strengthen joint action on training, border security and the fight against terrorism and to step up cooperation in other areas.

Osman mirghani, a Sudanese analyst and editor-in-chief of the independent newspaper Al-Tayar, told Al-Monitor that military cooperation between the two countries is a product of common interests and national security needs.

The Sudanese news agency reported on November 16 that more military maneuvers are underway between the two countries for late 2020 and 2021.

Raslan attributed the increase in security coordination and military cooperation between the two countries to the October 27 visit to Cairo by the head of the Sudanese Sovereignty Council, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, where he met with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi .

After their meeting, Sisi and Burhan stressed the importance of national security issues between the two countries, including the water issue, as they noted that both countries have committed to reaching a binding legal agreement that guarantees clear rules. for the filling and functioning process of the Great Ethiopian Renaissance Dam and the achievement of the common interests of all parties, according to a statement by the Egyptian presidency on October 27.

Egypt and Sudan have reserves on the giant hydroelectric dam that Ethiopia is building on the Blue Nile and its operational program, as all negotiations between the three countries have failed for a whole decade; the latest talks were on 4 November, when Egypt and Sudan announced a further failure to reach an agreement with Ethiopia on a methodology for completing the negotiations on filling and managing the dam. The African Union-sponsored negotiations ended without setting a date for another round.

Press reports indicate that the recent exchange of visits between Egyptian and Sudanese military leaders, culminating in the joint military training currently underway, is a warning to Ethiopia that if negotiations continue to falter, a military solution could be on the table. . .

On October 23, outgoing US President Donald Trump warned during a phone call with Sudanese Prime Minister Abdullah Hamdok against the possibility of Egypt resorting to bombing the dam if no agreement is reached.

Mirghani refused to link military cooperation and joint training between Egypt and Sudan to the possibility of resorting to a military solution on the dam. “Training has nothing to do with the security threat of any other country; Sudan had already conducted the same maneuvers in the same region three years ago with the Saudi air force. It is normal for military relations between Egypt and Sudan to grow not only in the interests of the two countries, but also for the region, because military cooperation helps to strengthen stability in the region, “he said.

Raslan said: “It makes no sense to talk about scenarios for a military solution regarding the Renaissance dam of Greater Ethiopia because the Egyptian leadership, and as President Sisi himself said, explicitly stressed that the negotiations will not be resolved militarily, but through negotiation, even if this path is difficult and long. “

Raslan added: “Are there other scenarios in case of extreme tension? This is an issue that cannot be taken into consideration, as no information is available about it. Too much talking about the military solution is a matter of excessive discussion without context “.