According to him, Egypt has long viewed key clauses as infringements on its sovereignty and has sought to bypass or erode them through actions on the ground rather than through legal or diplomatic channels.

Israeli security and diplomatic circles have raised alarms over what they describe as Egyptian attempts to “reshape the military reality” in Sinai beyond the limits set in the 1979 peace accord. Observers say this shift threatens the balance that has preserved stability for more than four decades. The main dispute today centers on Egypt’s increased military presence in Sinai, including in areas subject to strict arms restrictions. Israeli defense sources confirm that Cairo is increasingly enforcing this new reality without formal coordination — unprecedented since the treaty’s signing.

Former ambassador to Cairo, David Govrin, told Yedioth Ahronoth that the process amounts to a “silent dismantling” of restrictions imposed on Egypt’s military activity in Sinai. The treaty divided Sinai into three zones (A, B, and C), each with specific force limitations, balanced by a small Israeli military presence in zone D. Cairo, Govrin said, always saw these limits as undermining sovereignty and sought for decades to revise or circumvent them.