Will reviving old parliament bring Egypt-Sudan relations back to life?
Egyptian and Sudanese leaders could find solutions to their disputes by reinstating a formerly abandoned, shared parliamentary body.
CAIRO — The Egyptian Foreign Ministry recently accused the media of exaggerating the dispute between Egypt and Sudan over the Halayeb and Shalateen triangle, arguing that the issue does not represent a crisis between the two countries, which share good relations.
However, the ongoing debate in Egyptian political circles about the possibility of reinstating the Nile Valley Parliament, a body comprising parliamentarians from both countries, reveals deep political tension between the two.
The chairman of the Egyptian parliament’s Arab Affairs Committee delivered a speech in the Sudanese parliament demanding the reinstatement of the Nile Valley Parliament, and conveyed the same message to the Egyptian Foreign Ministry June 5. Some Egyptian politicians did not welcome the call, considering that Sudan’s politics toward Egypt have shifted.
The Nile Valley Parliament was established under the Charter of Integration between Egypt and Sudan, signed in 1982. It agreed to equal treatment for citizens, providing for freedom of movement, residency, acquisitions, labor and trade exchange between the two countries, as well as a joint unified policy at the level of international relations and diplomatic representation.
