An Egyptian flag waves in the wind as a container ship sails in the background on the Suez Canal in Egypt, on October 14, 2019. (Credit: Khaled Desouki/AFP.)
According to reports from the Wall Street Journal, Donald Trump informed Abdel Fattah al-Sisi that Washington hoped for his support in its campaign against the Houthis in Yemen, whether militarily, through intelligence sharing, or financially, with the Suez Canal's passage rights possibly being reduced.
"These canals wouldn't exist without the United States of America," declared Trump on April 27, referring to the Panama and Suez Canals, for which he demanded free passage for all U.S. vessels, military and commercial.
The U.S. administration launched near-daily strikes against Yemeni rebels starting March 15 as part of the operation "Rough Rider." The aim is to prevent Houthi attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea to ensure freedom of navigation, after the rebels announced they would resume targeting ships linked to Israel due to the complete blockade imposed by the Jewish state on Gaza ten days earlier, while the cease-fire was still in effect.
Transactional view of international relations
According to observers, the U.S. operation has already cost more than a billion dollars in one month, not counting the loss of at least seven MQ-9 Reaper drones, amounting to over $210 million, and more recently an F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jet estimated at more than $60 million.
In this scenario, Trump seeks compensation for U.S. operations that benefit others.
The Suez Canal is one of Cairo's main sources of foreign currency revenue, which has been heavily affected by the strikes launched from Yemen since Nov. 2023, claimed in support of the Palestinians. While he announced a decrease in canal revenue of nearly $7 billion for 2024, representing a drop of more than 60%, the Egyptian president claimed last month that Egypt was losing about $800 million per month due to the "regional" situation, without further details.
His statement, took place two days after the launch of the U.S. airstrikes campaign in Yemen, intended to allow merchant ships to safely navigate Bab al-Mandeb Strait to avoid having to bypass the African continent.
Several days later, on April 1, Trump reportedly raised the issue of Suez free passage for U.S. ships with his Egyptian counterpart during a phone call, reports the media The New Arab. This transactional mentality already appeared in messages exchanged by high-ranking officials of his administration in their Signal chat about the military campaign in Yemen, which leaked to the press.
"The president was clear: green light, but we must promptly clarify to Egypt and Europe" what we expect in return, wrote a participant with the initials S.M., identified as the national security adviser Stephen Miller. "If the U.S. manages to restore freedom of navigation at great cost, they should secure additional economic gains in exchange," he explained. According to the canal authority, American-flagged vessels represent a small part of total maritime traffic, a relatively modest sum in itself, analysts note, highlights the Wall Street Journal.
Cairo walking a tightrope
Al-Sisi, on his part, reportedly refused the U.S. proposal, indicating that a cease-fire in Gaza would be a better way to stop Houthi attacks, the newspaper continues, as the rebels had suspended their activities during the cease-fire effective Jan. 19 and Israel broke on March 18.
Cairo continues to keep communication channels open with the Houthis, further reported The New Arab, in a context where the country is the only one sharing a border with Gaza, fearing the destabilization that could be caused by forced displacement of Palestinians by Israel, with support from the Trump administration.
A matter of national pride, the sovereignty of the Suez Canal remains a sensitive issue in Egypt, where several expansion projects have been launched in recent years.
Inaugurated in 1869, it had been granted to the Universal Suez Maritime Canal Company, dominated by the French and British, before being nationalized in 1956 by Gamal Abdel Nasser during the Suez Crisis amid the Cold War.
While Washington exerted pressure after the invasion of Tel Aviv, Paris, and London that followed, the U.S. played no role in the establishment of the canal.
In Egypt, the reactions have thus been scathing in response to Trump's demand for free passage for U.S. ships. "The Suez Canal was officially inaugurated in 1869, while you had just finished your Civil War, still owned slaves, and barely had an operational railway," recalled Lamees al-Hadidi, one of the most well-known pro-government journalists.
The son of former president Hosni Mubarak, ousted during the Arab Spring, Alaa Mubarak, thus asked Donald Trump to "wise up," saying "enough with these silly things," he added according to The National. It is difficult under these conditions for the government to accede to U.S. demands. For now, Washington has not cut military aid to Egypt but has already threatened to do so if Cairo does not agree to host Gazans while it intends to empty the Gaza Strip.