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India-Egypt: 75th Anniversary of Diplomatic Ties

Posted on August 25, 2022 by admin1  511

In News

  • Recently Egypt released a Postage Stamp celebrating the 75th Anniversary of diplomatic ties with India.

More about the news

  • Diplomatic relations between Egypt and India were established with Egypt’s recognition of the independence of India on 18 August 1947, just three days after India’s independence.
    • Growing Egypt-India economic and commercial relations contribute to the stability and strength of a rapidly diversifying and deepening bilateral relationship. 

India-Egypt Relations

  • History: 
    • Ancient times:
      • India’s relations with Egypt began when the trade contacts between the two ancient civilizations grew along the banks of the river Nile and the river Indus.
    • Under Nehru’s leadership:
      • In 1955, Egypt under Gamal Abdel Nasser and India under Jawaharlal Nehru became the founders of the Non-Aligned Movement. 
      • During the 1956 War, Nehru stood supporting Egypt to the point of threatening to withdraw his country from the British Commonwealth. 
  • Friendship Treaty & bilateral relations:
    • The two nations became even closer in the 1950s and concluded a historic Friendship Treaty in 1955. 
      • During the last couple of years, the traditionally strong bilateral relations enjoyed by the two countries have received an impetus with regular exchange of high-level meetings and contacts between the two sides.
  • Trade & Commerce:
    • Egypt has traditionally been one of India’s most important trading partners in the African continent.
    • The India-Egypt Bilateral Trade Agreement has been in operation since March 1978 and is based on the Most Favoured Nation clause.
    • Major Egyptian exports to India include:
      • Raw cotton, raw and manufactured fertilizers, oil and oil products, organic and non-organic chemicals, leather and iron products.
    • Major imports into Egypt from India are: 
      • Cotton yarn, sesame, coffee, herbs, tobacco and lentils.
      • Mineral fuel; vehicle parts; Ship, boat and floating structure; cuts of boneless bovine frozen meat; and Electrical machinery and parts are also exported from India. 
    • There is a significant Indian presence in almost every field in Egypt. 
  • Technical and Scientific Cooperation:
    • Technical cooperation and assistance have been a major part of the bilateral relationship. 
      • Egyptian candidates visit India under the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation Programme (ITEC).
    • In the field of Scientific Cooperation, ICAR and the Agricultural Research Center of the Ministry of Agriculture & Land of Egypt signed a MoU for cooperation in the field of agricultural research in 1998.
  • Cultural Links:
    • The Maulana Azad Centre for Indian Culture (MACIC) was set up in Cairo in 1992 
      • It aims to promote cultural cooperation between the two countries, through the implementation of the Cultural Exchange Programme (CEP). 
      • The Centre, in addition to popularizing Indian culture through Hindi, Urdu and Yoga classes and the screening of movies, also organizes cultural festivals.
    • ‘India by the Nile’ festival:
      • It is a cultural festival celebrated annually in Egypt. 
      • It brings the essence of India through classical, contemporary, performing and visual arts, food and popular culture in a language that amalgamates diverse cultural and artistic strands. 
      • The festival is produced by Delhi-based M/S Teamwork Arts and supported by ICCR and the Egyptian Ministry of Culture.
  • The defence partnership:
    • It is being revived with among other developments the visit of the Indian Navy ship to Egypt, a month-long Air Force exercise and the visit of the Egyptian Air Force chief to India in recent months.

Non-Aligned Movement (NAM)

  • About:
    • It is a forum of 120 countries that are not formally aligned with or against any major power bloc. 
    • After the United Nations, it is the largest grouping of states worldwide.
      • The countries of the Non-Aligned Movement represent nearly two-thirds of the United Nations’ members and contain 55% of the world population. 
  • Establishment:
    • In 1961, drawing on the principles agreed at the Bandung Conference of 1955, the Non-Aligned Movement was formally established in Belgrade, Yugoslavia.
  •  Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence:
    • Zhou Enlai and Nehru described the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence to be used as a guide for Sino-Indian relations called Panchsheel (five restraints).
    • These principles would later serve as the basis of the Non-Aligned Movement. 
    • The five principles were:
      • Mutual respect for each other’s territorial integrity and sovereignty.
      • Mutual non-aggression.
      • Mutual non-interference in domestic affairs.
      • Equality and mutual benefit.
      • Peaceful co-existence.
  • Founders:
    • It was an initiative of Yugoslav President Josip Broz Tito, Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser, Ghanaian President Kwame Nkrumah, and Indonesian President Sukarno.
  • Accomplishment:
    • The international policy of non-alignment achieved major successes in decolonization, disarmament and opposition to racism and apartheid in South Africa.
    • The movement persisted throughout the entire Cold War.
    • After the cold war:
      • In the years since the Cold War’s end in 1992, it has focused on developing multilateral ties and connections as well as unity among the developing nations of the world.

Source: ET

 
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