Egypt is worried about unrest in its neighbor, analyzes a geopolitician

In the outbreak of violence in Sudan, Egypt hopes for a lasting truce between the two rival generals, who are talking arms to decide. Worried about the unrest in his neighbor, Abdel Fattah al-Sissi, the Egyptian number one, fears a spread of instability in the region. Since the Pharaohs, Egypt has considered Sudan as its backyard, its strategic depth with an eternal link, the Nile, which unites the two peoples.

>> Sudan: four questions to understand the fighting that is shaking the country

“Sudan is a bit like Egypt’s little brother, it’s turbulent, analyzes Marc Lavergne, geopolitician specializing in the Horn of Africa. It is difficult for Egypt to understand, because it is the opposite of Egypt, which is a very united country, whereas Sudan is quite complex. You can see it there, in terms of the different peoples and tribes that are there and that eventually confront each other.”

Egypt supports the Sudanese army

In the conflict between the two Sudanese generals at its doorstep, can Egypt play a mediating role? It is far from obvious, continues Marc Lavergne, because Cairo is not a neutral actor in this affair. “The Egyptian army is present in Sudan, there is Egyptian air force prepositioned in Meroe. We can see it since Hemedti’s auxiliaries tried to seize the air base of Meroe where there are these Egyptian planes especially.”

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Egypt supports the Sudanese army and its leader, General Burhrane, and is wary of his rival, General Hemedti, perceived by Cairo as a destabilizing element of the fragile Sudanese state, a man who could challenge Egyptian interests.