-Caveat Lector- http://www.ahram.org.eg/weekly/1999/453/op1.htm {{<Begin>}} Al-Ahram Weekly 28 Oct. - 3 Nov. 1999 Issue No. 453 Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 Critical misjudgements By Ibrahim Nafie The announcement of the new cabinet, and the Bright Star military exercises: two recent events that have provoked a deal of criticism. But while the controversy that followed the cabinet reshuffle is a manifestation of the current climate of democracy and free speech, that which has dogged Bright Star '99 illustrates the kind of agendas that emerge as a result of conflicting assessments of national interests and Egypt's regional role. The reshuffle drew particularly sharp criticisms from the opposition parties. Some expressed shock at what they considered minor changes while others went so far as to accuse the government of caving in to Zionist-American pressures to speed up the privatisation process, regardless of the social costs incurred. Yet more expressed their reservations about certain individual appointments, or else objected to administrative changes. This despite the fact that President Mubarak had made it perfectly clear in numerous speeches and interviews that the reshuffle was intended to promote a comprehensive vision for the development of Egyptian society. To realise the vision the performance of government institutions needs to be overhauled, public participation in government expanded, and there needs to be greater consistency between the efforts of government services and of the institutions of civil society. The new government's biggest challenge is to push ahead with the economic reform programme. The reforms envisioned, though, are far removed from the caricature some choose to promote -- selling off the public sector, driving workers out of their jobs. Rather, they are targeted at increasing GDP, attracting foreign investment in order to create more job opportunities, augmenting per capita income and generating higher standards of living across the board. In light of the high priority accorded to economic reform, it is essential for cabinet members, particularly the prime minister and the ministers with economic-related portfolios, to share a similar outlook on the optimum means to pursue their goals. And the exigencies of reform in general, and streamlining government in particular, made it logical that the Foreign Commerce Department be transferred from the Ministry of Supply to the Ministry of Economy. In a similar vein, the creation of the new information technology portfolio, and a department of technological development are necessary steps in enabling Egypt to keep pace with the telecommunications revolution. It was unfortunate that the cabinet reshuffle was preceded by a spate of wild conjecturing. The president and new prime minister had warned the public against such rumours, which, probably, lay behind the sense of anti-climax many felt. The Bright Star '99 military manoeuvres, on the other hand, sparked a different kind of controversy, in which Libya played a part. Bright Star '99, the largest joint military manoeuvres ever seen, involves 11 nations as participants and a further 33 as observers. Of the 70,000 soldiers taking part, 30,000 are Egyptian. This massive level of participation reflects Egypt's regional strategic weight. Libya's reaction to these manoeuvres is curious. In a display of paranoia it portrayed them as a scenario for the occupation of Egypt and at the same time a conspiracy against Libya. Likening them to the Allied landings in Normandy, official Libyan sources suggested that the manoeuvres were intended to prepare US and NATO forces to stage an amphibious landing in order to meet one of two contingencies. The first was to rescue Israel from an Arab invasion spearheaded by Egypt, the most powerful front-line country. The second was simply to respond to the US directive to occupy North Africa. Tripoli's warnings, it should by now be apparent, were made in a spirit of solidarity with Egypt, not as an attack on Egyptian policy. To illustrate, Libyan statements stressed the Egyptian rejection of the US secretary of defence's request that Israel participate. Libyan paranoia aside, it should be stressed that Bright Star '99 is entirely unrelated to any current international or regional tensions. This year's manoeuvres are the tenth in the series intended to help formulate strategies for international military cooperation to preserve world peace. The purpose of the joint training exercises is to develop mutual understanding and hone expertise in joint planning, communications and control systems, and to give practical training in implementing emergency tactical operations. >From the Egyptian perspective, Bright Star '99 fully conforms to the concerns and needs of our armed forces. The central idea behind the joint training manoeuvres this year is, in a sense, to equip Egypt to counter a military threat. The exercises, thus, stage a scenario in which Egypt is to intercept and repel an armed invasion with the assistance of our partners' air and missile coverage, thereby forcing the hostile power to respond to a UN Security Council cease-fire resolution. Then, in the event that the hostile power refuses to comply with the cease-fire resolution and refuses to withdraw from occupied territory, the scenario calls for a comprehensive offensive operation aimed at recovering the occupied territory. Equally important to the development of the Egyptian armed forces is the fact that the military drills involve training in complex strategic manoeuvres using highly sophisticated equipment. Amphibious landings, in particular, are intricate operations that demand close coordination. It is surprising that the Libyans should think of Bright Star '99 as serving Israeli interests. In spite of the good intentions behind the Libyan objections to Bright Star '99, its anxieties, quite clearly, are not founded upon the true nature or aims of these manoeuvres. If the Libyans fear a conspiracy against their country, just because the US and NATO are involved in Bright Star, they have obviously forgotten, temporarily, that Egypt would never participate in any military operation against Libya, or any other Arab nation for that matter. The reason for this is quite straightforward: Egypt considers any threat to the security of another Arab nation as a threat to its own national security. 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