Lyndon Johnson Administration: Memorandum on Egypt-Soviet Cooperation

Washington, May 28, 1966.

EGYPTIAN-SOVIET RELATIONS

Summary

Egypt and the USSR may be moving toward a period of closer cooperation in the pursuit of their common objectives in the Arab world. Nasir's reviving antagonism toward conservative and moderate Arab leaders, his concurrent tendency to try to unify "progressive and revolutionary" Arab forces, and his renewed hostility toward US and British policy in the Middle East have almost certainly increased his readiness to collaborate with Moscow. Moscow's present leadership will be cautiously receptive to opportunities Nasir may offer for extending Soviet influence in the area. They already appear to be preparing to work somewhat more closely with him than in the past in espousing his kind of Arab nationalism, socialism, and opposition to Western influence. There are, however, definite limitations on such cooperation well-recognized by both sides.

[Here follow 17 paragraphs of more detailed discussion.]

/1/Source: Johnson Library, National Security File, Country File, United Arab Republic, Vol. IV. Secret; No Foreign Dissem; No Dissem Abroad; Controlled Dissem/Background Use Only. A note in the source text states that the memorandum was prepared by the Office of Current Intelligence in the CIA Directorate of Intelligence and coordinated with ORR and ONE.

Sources: Foreign Relations of the United States, 1964-1968, V. 18, Arab-Israeli Dispute 1964-1967. DC: GPO, 2000.