Controversy dominates Egypt’s over Hakim’s visit

The visit of Head of Iraqi National Alliance Ammar Al Hakim to Egypt raised a state of controversy among the media channels and newspapers, as some of them viewed the visit as a beginning of economic cooperation between the two countries, while others loyal to Islamist current described it as an Iranian maneuver to impose the Iranian influence inside the Egyptian community.

Egyptian parliamentarian Ahmed Khalil of Salafist Nour Party expressed his refusal to the visit, saying that Hakim is a Shiite leader who lived in Iran for years before transferring to Iraq. He added that he came to Cairo to present the Iranian proposals aiming to impose the Iranian influence on Iraq. He added that the visit comes to beautify the ugly image of the Iranian militias before the Iraqi elections scheduled to be held in September.

Egyptian expert of international relations Said Lawendi said that the visit aims to improve the Egyptian-Iranian relations, saying that Hakim attempts to perform a role to bridge the gap of difference between Egypt and Iran. He expressed his support for taking serious steps to push forward the relations between Egypt and Iran during the coming period, saying that Iran is considered one of the major Islamic countries in the Middle East.

He added that Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi is keen to develop relations with Iraq during the current period, saying that the visit conducted by Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry to Baghdad last year reflected Egypt’s desire to keep Iraq’s territorial integrity. He added that the visit will turn a new page in the relation between Egypt on one hand and both Iraq and Iran on the other hand.

Head of Iraqi National Alliance Ammar Al Hakim conducted a visit to Cairo Thursday, as he met with President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi and a number of Egyptian officials. During the visit, Hakim underlined the role performed by Egypt to lead the countries of the region to achieve security and stability, calling the Arab countries for holding dialogue to discuss the ways to keep the regional security and stability.

He stressed that Egypt’s role is not limited to the Arab world but extends to the region and the world as whole, saying that the Egyptian government works to support regional balance in the Middle East. He proposed organizing a conference gathering between the major powers of the region, including Saudi Arabia, Iran and Turkey to achieve regional understanding and to ease the current conflicts witnessed in the region.