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Eastern Europe

Egypt’s al-Sisi and Putin Pledge Common Front against Terrorism

Juan Cole 08/27/2015

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By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – –

Egypt’s president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi met Wednesday for the third time in a year with Russian leader Vladimir Putin in Moscow. Putin is attempting to draw Egypt into a common front against terrorism. He wants to fight Daesh [ISIS, ISIL]) in Syria, which is only a 24 hour automobile drive from Russia’s troubled Chechen region.

Putin sees the common front against Daesh as a basis for a new level of strategic ties between the Moscow and Cairo.

But Putin put sl-Sisi in a difficult position by saying that the anti-terrorism front would include Syria’s president Bashar al-Assad.

Al-Sisi carefully avoided saying anything in response.

Egypt quietly has good relations with Syria, but its main backer right now is Saudi Arabia, which is attempting to overthrow al-Assad .

The two have some common economic interests, as well. Russia is offering to build Egypt a nuclear power plant, and Egypt is offering Russia some free trade zones along the refurbished Suez Canal.

Egyptian critics complained that al-Sisi dressed just like Putin, in a dark three piece suit, for all the meetings.

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Related video:

CCTV: “Putin meets visiting Egyptian president in Moscow”

Filed Under: Eastern Europe, Egypt, Featured, Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, Russia

About the Author

Juan Cole is the founder and chief editor of Informed Comment. He is Richard P. Mitchell Professor of History at the University of Michigan He is author of, among many other books, Muhammad: Prophet of Peace amid the Clash of Empires and The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam. Follow him on Twitter at @jricole or the Informed Comment Facebook Page

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