Egypt belongs in the Mecca defence agreement—and has every right to set conditions

Egypt belongs in the Mecca agreement. No regional defence structure can reach its full political or military potential without Cairo. The Mecca agreement must never become a mechanism through which one member legitimizes its foreign deployments and obliges the others to defend them. Egypt should negotiate, not remain outsideEgypt should not reject the Mecca agreement because of these concerns. Egypt belongs in the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement.