Identity and Foreign Policy: The Case of Egypt

Abstract

An analysis of foreign policy behavior requires much research to identify the roots. Policies contain goals and goals are shaped by national interests. National interests may be based on a set of personal values and identities which are associated with ideology, worldview, and material interests etc. Considering Egypt as a Middle Eastern country in which the personal is political in the absence of institutionalized foreign-policy understanding and there is no single identity at the individual level, this article tries to find out identities which have an important place in shaping the way Egypt’s leaders think to decide foreign policy behaviors. Different identities have been constructed and employed in a way to serve to Egypt’s either realist or idealist international orientation from Nasser to Sisi’s era. This article finds out that while Nasser identified Egypt’s foreign policy behavior with Arab nationalism and non-aligned orientation, Sadat and Mubarak’s Western orientation and realist world-views primarily directed Egypt’s foreign policy. This shows that the decrease in the Arab-Israeli conflict has paralleled the decline of Arab nationalism. After the revolution of 2011, Islamic identity came to the surface of Egyptian foreign policy but the deterioration of financial situation put an end for Morsi’s administration to implement long-term foreign policies. At present, Egypt is under the military regime that is pursuing pragmatic goals because of deep economic problems. Therefore, frequent axis shifts are likely to be seen in Sisi’s foreign policy.