An interesting choice of words by the Egyptian foreign minister, Aboul Gheit regarding the aspirations of Iran in the Middle East. From the Jordan Times article:
One major difference between Egypt and Iran is Israel. Egypt has tasted the effects of war with Israel and that is one of the major reasons the Egyptians have worked hard to coexist with Israel in the region - at the same time, Egypt has had to deal with existing next to the cesspool of misfits in Palestine. Compare that to the constant verbal attacks and terroristic stance by Iran against Israel and of course, the constant support of the terror groups in Palestine by the Iranians.
It's a given that the Arabs and the Persians simply do not get along and with the recent surge of Hezbollah's power in Lebanon, we should see the precipice between these two ideologies grow even wider.
“The political cards which Iran holds... it holds out of a desire to defend Iranian interests. It might be Iran’s right to try, but Egypt has a right to defend Arab territory,” he added.It's no secret that there are plenty of Arab countries right now that are not comfy with all of the moves that Iran has made in the Middle East lately and throw in the threat of those pesky nuclear weapons and we may see some warnings become less subtle.
“You now find that Iran is on a surge and it imagines that it is able to influence the region. Perhaps they can influence the region, but we always say to our friends in Iran: ‘Let the influence on the region be positive’,” he said.
One major difference between Egypt and Iran is Israel. Egypt has tasted the effects of war with Israel and that is one of the major reasons the Egyptians have worked hard to coexist with Israel in the region - at the same time, Egypt has had to deal with existing next to the cesspool of misfits in Palestine. Compare that to the constant verbal attacks and terroristic stance by Iran against Israel and of course, the constant support of the terror groups in Palestine by the Iranians.
It's a given that the Arabs and the Persians simply do not get along and with the recent surge of Hezbollah's power in Lebanon, we should see the precipice between these two ideologies grow even wider.
Egypt sees Iran ‘on a surge’ in Arab world
CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt sees Iran “on a surge” in the Arab world, playing many political and diplomatic cards regardless of Arab interests, Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit said in an interview.
“The political cards which Iran holds... it holds out of a desire to defend Iranian interests. It might be Iran’s right to try, but Egypt has a right to defend Arab territory,” he added.
“You now find that Iran is on a surge and it imagines that it is able to influence the region. Perhaps they can influence the region, but we always say to our friends in Iran: ‘Let the influence on the region be positive’,” he said.
Aboul Gheit was speaking to the newspaper Rose Al Yousef and the state news agency MENA carried the text on Sunday.
The Egyptian government is part of an informal Arab alliance against Iranian influence in the Arab world but Egyptian officials rarely speak against Tehran in public.
The Egyptian minister noted Iranian influence in Iraq, in Lebanon, where it backs the Shiite Muslim movement Hizbollah, and in the Palestinian territories, where it helps Hamas.
“What we now see in Lebanon... amounts to the achievement of gains by an Islamic party by which I mean Iran, which holds many of the cards,” he said.
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