Is the downing of MH804 the first in a series of attacks that will crash the European economy? It is not yet clear what brought the Egyptian Flight MS804 down. No Jihadist group has claimed responsibility until now. The data from the plane sent to a data center just before the crash indicates that there was smoke near the cockpit. One of the possible scenario’s is that some of the Charles De Gaulle airport staff smuggled a bomb on board of the plane. The same plot brought down the Russian plane . Charles De Gaulle already dismissed 70 staff members due to their connections with ISIS.
Egypt
Egypt, being in a very difficult geopolitical position, may be the next victim of the Syrian war. The Egyptian army has beens truggling with Islamic terrorists on the Sinai Peninsula for a long time, with he Libyan branch of Islamic State causing problems in the western part of the country. Unfortunately for President Abd al-Fattah as-Sisi, with Russian raids in Syria, Islamic militants are now moving to Libya through Sinai.
Egypt did not want to get involved in the war in Syria or in Iraq, directly or indirectly, trying not to spoil the relations with Saudi Arabia. Egypt shared with Bashar al-Assad the common aim, which is to fight the Islamic insurgency. In fact, the nation is waging a war in the north of Sinai against militant groups loyal to the Islamic State. The worst is yet to come, though. Continue reading
Russia has signed an estimated $2 billion contract for the supply of about 12 Su-35 multi-role fighter jets to Egypt. Source: Defenseworld
Meeting in Russia’s Black Sea resort of Sochi, the Russian and Egyptian presidents have signed what officials describes as a strategic cooperation treaty designed to increase trade, military, and other ties between the two nations. Source: Radio Free Europe
Egypt is working on a new model for future oil and natural gas production contracts in undeveloped areas to spur exploration and help become self-sufficient in energy, oil ministry and company officials said. Source: Bloomberg
A Saudi-led coalition struck a navy school in Yemen’s port city of Hodeidah, the Houthis’ al-Masirah TV said late on Monday. Source: Reuters
The huge Zohr gas field offshore Egypt has increased its production six-fold since it started production in January this year, Egypt’s Petroleum Minister Tarek el-Molla said on Thursday. Source: Oil Price
An Egyptian company is set to begin importing gas from Israeli offshore fields in the first quarter of 2019 and to re-export it as part of its plan to become a regional gas hub. Source: Oil Price
Eni announced Monday a second oil discovery in the Fagur Basin in the Egyptian Western Desert. Source: Rigzone
The World Bank supports Egypt’s efforts to be a regional oil and gas trading hub, as several new gas projects started up recently in the Mediterranean country, the Egyptian Ministry of Petroleum said on Monday. Source: Oil Price
Egypt and four other countries have said they will refuse to host migrants aiming for the European Union. The “reception centers” are part a broader plan to more evenly distribute asylum seekers in Europe. Source: Deutsche Welle
Egypt has raised gasoline prices by up to 50 percent, the oil ministry said on Saturday, under an IMF reform plan calling for austerity measures that have made life tougher for ordinary Egyptians. Source: Reuters
A meeting of the Arab League has demanded an international probe into what it denounced as “crimes” by Israeli forces on the country’s border with Gaza. Source: Euronews
Energy regulators MEDREG have facilitated the organisation of a technical study visit between the newly established Egyptian gas regulatory authority (GasReg), and Portugal’s regulatory authority (ERSE), to address regulatory experiences regarding liberalisation of gas markets. Source: New Europe
The European Union and Egypt have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for a strategic partnership on energy. Egypt’s Electricity and Renewable Energy Minister Mohamed Shaker, Petroleum and Mineral Resources Minister Tarek al-Molla, and EU Climate Action and Energy Commissioner Miguel Arias Cañete signed the MoU during the latter’s official visit to Egypt on April 23. Source: New Europe
An Arab League summit called on Sunday for an international probe into the “criminal” use of chemical weapons in Syria and condemned what it saw as Iran’s interference in the affairs of other countries. Source: Reuters
British Petroleum has begun to sell off its mature oil fields in Egypt to shift its focus to developing the country’s large natural gas reserves. Source: Oil Price
Saudi Arabia and Egypt set up a $10 billion joint fund on Sunday to develop a planned mega-city, committing more than 1,000 square kilometers in the south Sinai, as Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman met President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Cairo. Source: Reuters
The Egyptian air force has bombed six terrorist targets in Sinai and, for the first time in its modern military history, in the famous Nile Delta. Source: DEBKAfile
Egypt on Wednesday warned Turkey against any infringement of its economic rights in the eastern Mediterranean under a maritime border demarcation agreement signed in 2013 with Cyprus that allows exploration for gas in the area. Source: Reuters
Saudi Arabia’s ACWA Power has awarded an engineering, procurement and construction contract to China’s Chint Group for three solar photovoltaic power plants in southern Egypt. Source: CNBC
The Arab League will meet on Feb. 1 to discuss how to counter U.S. President Donald Trump’s move last month to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, Egypt’s state news agency MENA said on Wednesday. Source: Reuters
OPEC is closely following the protests in Iran and the economic struggles of Venezuela, but the cartel will not intervene in the market by ramping up supply unless significant prolonged production disruptions in those two countries occur. Source: Oil Price
Gunmen killed at least nine people including three police in an attack on a Coptic Christian church south of Cairo on Friday, medical and security sources said. Source Reuters
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Dec. 13 called on the international community to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of the Palestinian state. Source: Hürriyet Daily News
Russian President Vladimir Putin met Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Cairo on Monday for talks over a nuclear power plant and tensions in the Middle East following Washington’s decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. Source: Reuters