In Geopolitics Today - Wednesday, August 4th
Qatar Seeks to Improve Ties with Egypt and Forest Fires in Turkey Expose a Lack of Preparedness
Qatar Seeks to Improve Ties with Egypt
With signs of reconciliation between Qatar and Egypt beginning to appear as early as January of this year, Qatar has now confirmed that the country has appointed a new ambassador to Egypt, setting the stage for better relations with Cairo in the coming period. The move by the Emir of Qatar brings diplomatic representation to Cairo for Qatari diplomatic representation back to Cairo for the first time since relations between the two countries hit a low point nearly ten years earlier.
With the ousting of Mohamed Morsi during the 2013 uprising in Egypt, relations between the two countries turned sour. Under Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Cairo has on several occasions accused Qatari media outlets of providing negative coverage of Egyptian affairs in the region, as well as demanded answers from the Qatari government for harbouring Egyptian opposition figures after they fled Egypt following the downfall of the Morsi. Since Abdel Fattah el-Sisi came to power in Egypt, Qatar has also expressed its share of grievances. Qatar fervently opposed Egypt's moves in Libya, the eastern Mediterranean and Africa.
But the hostilities which have dominated the relationship in recent years appear to be winding down. In May this year, the Foreign Minister of Qatar, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman, made a visit to Cairo for the first time in over four years. No later than a month after Abdulrahman’s visit, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry made a reciprocal move by visiting Doha with a formal invitation for the Emir of Qatar to visit Egypt. The reconciliation between Cairo and Doha is a signal of shifting allegiances in the Middle East at a time when four distinct centres of power are forming in the region — Turkey, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Israel.
Read more about this story here.
Forest Fires in Turkey Expose a Lack of Preparedness
Roughly one hundred large fires are causing devastating economic damage to Turkey's southern coast. Whole towns are burning down, thousands of animals have been killed, and tourists and locals alike are scrambling to evacuate. The effect of these forest fires have been particularly damaging to Turkey’s lucrative tourist destinations near Bodrum and Antalya on its South coast, with videos showing whole towns aflame.
As the fires still rage, something particularly damaging for the Turkish government has been the (in)ability of authorities to contain the widespread fires. Until a few years ago, Turkey could boast of a moderate firefighting fleet of some 9 Canadair CL-215 firefighting airplanes, which can take in up to 5 tons of water from any body of water and drop the payload onto the fire without the need to make landings. But now, with a real crisis on the government’s hands, at a time when these airplanes would prove to be the best tool to dampen the fires, it seems the Turkish Aeronautical Association has failed to adequately upkeep the firefighting fleet.
The result has been an abysmal response to the forest fires, and a delayed call by the Turkish government for assistance from international partners. Turkey has leased three Russian BE-200 firefighting aircraft for the price of $24 million, with the lease agreed only after the Turkey reportedly chose to reject offers of assistance from Greece. With pressure on the Turkish government over the last few days building, Turkish authorities are now asking for more help dealing with the crisis. Turkish calls for assistance have so far been answered by the EU (Spain and Croatia), Russia, Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, Iran and Azerbaijan.
Read more about this story here.