Will border region dispute threaten Egyptian-Sudanese ties?
In an interview with Al-Monitor, new Halayeb-Shalateen parliamentarian Mamdouh Amara spoke about the dispute between Cairo and Khartoum over the area, as well as the main problems facing development in remote regions.
CAIRO — The Halayeb-Shalateen Triangle is an area of land just under 8,000 square miles (13,000 square kilometers) on the Egyptian-Sudanese border. While it is of great importance to Egypt due to its location on the country’s southern border, north of the so-called administrative boundary set by the British in the early 20th century, Sudan has been determined to lay claim to the area as a way to preserve the country’s sovereignty.
Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir has stated, “The Halayeb-Shalateen Triangle is a Sudanese area but we are not going to war for it — it will be reclaimed through negotiations.” Meanwhile, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi said during a TV interview before assuming the presidency, “The Halayeb-Shalateen Triangle is part of Egyptian territory … And we urge Sudan not to start a conflict with Egypt.” For the first time ever, a representative of the disputed region has been elected to the Egyptian parliament in a bid to strengthen the country’s claim. Al-Monitor interviewed Mamdouh Amara about the problems facing his constituency, the government’s plan to develop it and the nature of the Egyptian-Sudanese dispute.
