The Suez Canal is one of the most talked about man-made structures in the world.

The Suez Canal is one of the finest man-made structures in the world. Its contribution to the world and the world economy is unparalleled. It is about 120 miles long and connects the Red Sea between Africa and Saudi Arabia, encircling Turkey, Greece and Italy, as well as the Mediterranean Sea.Accordingly, this article will provide an insight into the first attempt to build the Suez Canal, how it was built, the conflicts that arose, how it is governed today, and its significance.

• The first attempt to build the Suez Canal.
  Napoleon Bonaparte, the first emperor of modern France, attempted to build the Suez Canal. However, at various times in ancient times the idea of ​​building a canal connecting the Red Sea and the Mediterranean Sea came to the fore. But none of these plans seem to have been fully implemented.
  Napoleon hoped that this would affect Britain's maritime trade, as well as impose a tax on British trade using the canal.

• Construction of Suez Canal.

Ferdinand Lessep was a French engineer. Around 1858, he used diplomatic relations to obtain the support and consent of the Egyptian government for the construction of the Suez Canal. The result is the Universal Suez Canal Company. Accordingly, it is stated that the company was empowered to construct the canal as well as to carry out operations for about 99 years.
Construction began on September 25, 1859, and was opened ten years later, on November 17, 1869. It is said that about 100 million dollars was spent for this.

• Conflicts over the Suez Canal.

There have also been some conflicts over the Suez Canal. The first instance was in 1936 when the British deployed their troops to administer the Suez Canal. However, in 1954, Egypt agreed to withdraw its troops in accordance with an agreement reached with Britain.
It is also important to mention the Suez Crisis of 1956. On July 26, 1956, Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser conquered the Suez Canal. This right was owned by the Suez Canal Company.

The United States and Britain promised to provide financial assistance to the Aswan Dam in Egypt, but the decision not to do so led to the Suez crisis. The Western countries came to this decision because of Nasser's close ties with the Soviet Union and Czechoslovakia. Nasser responded to the American decision by declaring martial law on the canal. At this point, Britain, France and Israel planned to open the Suez Canal and overthrow Nasser if possible.
On October 29, 1956, about 10 Israeli troops invaded Egypt and marched towards the canal. Britain and France also implemented their plans and called on Egyptian and Israeli forces to withdraw from the canal. But this time the attempt was thwarted as the United States opposed the intervention. Accordingly, on December 22, the United Nations withdrew British and French troops, and in March 1957, Israel withdrew.

• Current administration of Suez Canal.
  Today it is administered by the Suez Canal Authority. The width here is 300 meters. Length km. 163. Ships up to 19 meters high and weighing 210,000 tons will be able to use it. Also, due to some difficulties with the canal, the Suez Canal was widened by about 35 miles [35 km].
  Sailors have also been instructed to sail at low speeds to prevent damage to the shores. It also states that the fare is determined by the type and capacity of the ship. It is reported that the annual income of this country is over 5000 million.

• The importance of the Suez Canal

This saves up to 8,900 km of shipping time to Asian countries, European countries as well as import-export countries such as the United States, as well as ten days. It took about 24 days to reach Europe, covering a distance of 11,300 nautical miles around the greeting tip of Africa.However, due to the Suez Canal 6400 nautical miles as well as 14 days can be reduced. This saves about 43% of the total distance shipped to European countries. It also covers about 10% of the world's shipping.
About 50-60 ships ply here daily. It is also stated that the amount of goods being transported is around 03 million tons per day. In 2016, 16,833 ships sailed and 819 million tons of cargo was transported. It has many advantages, such as faster delivery of goods, saving time, lower fuel costs, lower shipping costs, and less natural disasters at sea.

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Extract from internet