Fellow Citizens,
Every year on the anniversary of the glorious war of October 1973 Egypt renews its
pride. On that day, the Egyptian people realized its greatest and most memorable victory
over history, deterring aggression and regaining the nation,s self-confidence. This
victory further proved Egyptians? ability to accomplish a military feat next to
impossible,
based on courageous decision-making, thorough preparation and planning and valiant
performance. This was supported by a spirit of enthusiasm that embodied Egyptians?
pervading patriotism and their unceasing willingness to sacrifice their lives in defense
of
every spot of the motherland.
The October War was indeed an ingenious military feat that proved the valour of
Egyptian combatants and the ability of the Egyptian military to accomplish a pre-emptive
attack of a strategic nature. This was conducted under complicated international
conditions that generated power imbalances and made the battle for liberating Arab
territories virtually impossible, relying on the people,s trust in the ability of their
Armed
Forces to surmount all obstacles and challenges.
The combat decision to declare the October War, taken by Egypt?s faithful son late
President Anwar As-Sadat, was indeed an embodiment of the will of the entire nation. As
a result, the impact of this war has extended beyond its geographical scope to the depth
of the military and political history of the Middle East, with all the plentiful lessons
learned in relation to the question of war and peace.
Right from the beginning, realistic objectives for the war had been determined, and
consequently were accomplished with great success. The first was to obligate Israel to
relinquish dreams of everlasting hegemony and supremacy. The second was to prompt
the international community to move towards the achievement of just and lasting peace
in the region, based on equal rights, balanced interests and mutual security obligations
for all countries in the region.
Brothers and Sisters,
As much as Egypt was an excellent performer in war, it was equally a pioneer in peace. It
was thanks to the brave historical initiative of late President Anwar As-Sadat to visit
Jerusalem, that negotiations for peace and stability started.
Despite all odd conditions that we suffered and unfair accusations that befell us in the
wake of the first Camp David Conference in 1978 and the peace treaty with Israel in
1979, history proved to the whole world Egypt's insight concerning peace which enabled
us to regain full sovereignty over all our lands first through war, then negotiations and
finally international arbitration to restore the last inch of Egypt's land in Taba.
I trust you remember that our negotiations in Camp David Conference were not only for
the sake of Egypt but also to benefit from the momentum generated by 6th October
victory in reaching a just and comprehensive peace in the Middle East including the
establishment of an independent Palestinian state on all its national soil after a short
transitional period of five years as stipulated in detail in the first framework of Camp
David treaty for peace in the Middle East.
The pressures that Egypt underwent immediately after signing the peace agreement
have never affected its unstinting efforts to reach an equitable and comprehensive peace
on the three tracks: Palestinian, Syrian, and Lebanese. So we played a distinguished role
in the success of Madrid Peace Conference held in October, 1991 which established the
principle Land for Peace formula.
Moreover, we made remarkable contributions towards reaching various agreements on
the Palestinian track, starting the Palestinian- Israeli Declaration of Principles signed
in
Oslo, September 1993, followed by Gaza-Jericho Agreement signed in Cairo in May,
1994, then the Transitional Stage Agreement negotiated in Taba and later signed in
Washington in September, 1995.
There followed Sharm al-Sheikh Summit in March, 1996, the Egyptian-French Initiative
for Peace in May, 1998, the second Sharm al-Sheikh Summit Agreement in September,
1999, in addition to other visits and bilateral communications with the Palestinian
president and the successive prime ministers of Israel. All these endeavours were made
with the purpose of bringing viewpoints closer and reaching an agreement as early as
possible. In spite of all these efforts and the progress made by both parties in
negotiations, no framework agreement for a peace treaty has been so far achieved, thus
leaving the entire peace process once again liable to a standstill.
I hope wisdom will prevail, reason triumph and all parties, especially Israel, will come
to
realize that imposing the status quo will not make an equitable peace. Moreover, forcing
any party to waste or relinquish his own rights will not guarantee an everlasting peace,
especially if this affects religious sanctities that have significant connotations to each
Muslim, Christian and Jew.
We look forward to seeing, as soon as possible, an independent sovereign Palestinian
state with East Jerusalem as its capital. This could be attained only through the honest
implementation of the international legitimacy resolutions, on top of which come the
Security Council Resolutions Nos. 242 and 338. This should lead to the restoration of
territories occupied since 1967 to their rightful owners and guarantee the full and honest
implementation of the Land for Peace principle that was willingly agreed upon by parties
as the basis of settlement.
I also hope that Israel would realize that achieving peace on the Syrian track requires
returning to the borders of June 4, 1967 as stipulated by resolutions Nos. 242 and 338
without involvement in futile dodgery.
After 22 years of waiting to reach a peace treaty, Syria will not accept no less than
sovereignty over its entire territory. I was happy at the Israeli decision of unilateral
withdrawal from South Lebanon. I also hope that Israel would further enhance the
credibility it has showed on this track by avoiding any borders violations. Furthermore,
Israel has to exercise maximum self-restraint in the face of provocative attempts by
enemies of peace that we would never accept Lebanon or the Lebanese people to pay
for. We do call for real peace, a peace that paves the way for a historical reconciliation
among Arab countries and Israel based on co-existence, stability and mutual cooperation
for a better life for all peoples of the region.
Therefore, to achieve stability and avoid probabilities of military confrontation with its
devastating effects on the coming generations, it is necessary that the attainment of
comprehensive peace in the region should be concomitant with an agreement that
guarantees the aspired military balance in post peace phase. This should not allow either
party to attain supremacy over the other. The most important element of such balance is
to declare the Middle East a mass-devastation weapons-free zone, be they nuclear,
chemical and biological weapons.
This requires all countries of the region, including Arab countries and Israel, to abandon
the possession of such weapons. This would affirm its desire to live in peace and
stability
and to proceed towards new horizons of development and prosperity away from the
spectre of war that has overshadowed the region for several years.
Greetings to late President Anwar As-Sadat, the hero of war and peace. Greetings to our
valiant Armed Forces that had accomplished an overwhelming victory in the glorious 6th
October War.
Greetings to Egypt's faithful martyrs who had sacrificed their lives. Greetings to Egypt's
great people who stand behind their Armed Forces in war and equally proceed with
determination towards just and comprehensive peace.
May Allah protect Egypt from all evils and preserve all its countrymen as reserve in
store in weal or woe, responding to the call of duty and defending its soil.
Thus, Egypt will continue to maintain its elevated standing among nations and remain, as
Allah will it to be, a secure country and an outpost of enlightening and progress for all
the
world. May Allah guide us to the path of success, May His peace, mercy and blessings
be unto you. |
