Russia - Egypt Relations Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Russia - Egypt Relations - Term Paper Example Russia and Egypt’s relationship is historically complex and has varied considerably along dimensions of cooperativeness throughout the past one hundred years based on global events that include regions like the Middle East, Europe, and the United States. Russia has traditionally seen Egypt as a strategic partner, connecting it to the Middle East for trade and regional influence, while Egypt has traditionally seen Russia as a key trading partner to secure wealth and military infrastructure. In that sense, the political interests of the two nations have generally been congruent. Exceptions to that have occurred with philosophical changes at the top of Egypt’s government – rather than due to changes with Russia – which is why the relationship is best understood from the perspective of who was in power in Egypt throughout the period. With that in mind, the modern Russia-Egypt relationship can be described in phases: the first phase representing a warm and open association with the Nasser regime, the second phase representing a cold and close association with the Sadat regime, and the third phase from Mubarak to today in which Russia is again treated as a close ally. The most helpful place to start with an examination of Russia-Egypt relations is to look at its historical foundation, which began as early as the 1500s and so not surprisingly, based in religion. At that time, the Orthodox Christian tradition was very strong within the Russian political landscape and would significantly influence Russia’s decision to get involved with Egypt’s religious and political affairs. Patriarch Joachim of Alexandria sent correspondence to Russian Czar Ivan IV for assistance to the Sinai Peninsula-based Saint Catherine’s Monastery, which had been contested by Turkish fighters1. In response, Ivan IV sent a Russian delegation to visit sites across Egypt. Since that showing of support, Russia continued to provide support for Egypt’s Christian population, which accounts for roughly one-tenth of Egypt’s total population as of 20102.