Abstract
After being called ‘Hollywood of the East’, Egypt’s soft power has witnessed a decline from the start of the years 2000s; due to 9/11/2001 and its aftermath, until it reached its lowest point since the Arab Spring in 2011. The deterioration hit its media sector, arts industry, sports and diplomacy. However, since 2014 a revival for one of its soft power capabilities happened. Its diplomacy. Diplomacy is on the rise and has some potential to restore Egypt’s status as ‘an active’ regional player. To illustrate that Egypt is now a temporary Security Council member in the United Nations for two years. This status earned after a lot of recommendation from Arab, African and Islamic blocks in the Security Council. To win this seat it required a lot of diplomatic efforts and lobbying which were successful at the end after being absent from non-permanent membership in UNSC since 1997. The first signs of decline in its diplomatic power started in 2006. This was due to USA’s neglect for Egypt and putting a lot of pressure on it from Bush junior’s Administration to comply with US values and interests in the region. This has been accentuated in the Bush Doctrine and was a natural outcome of September 11 attacks in 2001. The argument in here is that despite the decline in Egyptian status on all levels, and its soft power among them, due to turmoil resulting from the Arab Spring yet Egypt still has potential for revival and gaining a leading role due to its soft power. This study will be based on qualitative analysis to prove the argument. A diplomat and an academic have been interviewed to further illustrate the ideas expressed in this article. There are a number of issues that show success in Egypt’s diplomacy to prove this argument since 2014.
Highlights
“the ability to affect other’s behavior by coercion, inducement or attraction” (2007, p. 163). He further elaborated that for states their main source of soft power lies in their foreign policy, culture and political values (Nye in world politics, 2004b, 2007, p. 164)
Another definition for soft power given by David Ellwood is that it is one of the foreign policy tools used by states to “define themselves as global leaders” and one could add or regional one too (2014)
For Ellwood the use of soft power is to gain achievements and advantages in international relations. These definitions boost the classification of Diplomacy as one of the soft powers used by states and non-state actors to gain their interest
Summary
The rise of Egypt’s status as a leader on the regional stage to a great extent is owed to its soft power. Egypt’s Cairo became known as “Hollywood of the East”, any Arab actor, singer or artist who wishes to gain popularity, regardless to their nationality, would come to Egypt and join its cinema and in no time she/he becomes a super star in the Arab world. This has been a feature not just since the 1950s but has been ongoing since late 1930s and 1940s and arguably until today with a lesser degree. The massacre of Port Said Stadium in Feb 2012, which resulted in the death of seventy two ultras fans This incident has marked the end of football legacy on local level; the Egyptian league. There have been many attempts by Egyptian football fans; ultras to try to watch the games live and by force against the police/security forces’ will but that was met in an antagonistic way from the police side
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