Suez Canal Crisis

Suez Canal Crisis

Backgroud

Britain

British military presence had been granted in the Canal by Egypt since the 1936 Anglo-Egyptian Treaty however, in 1951, Egypt withdrew from said treaty and ordered the British withdrawal of troops.

After refusing, violence broke out against the British troops with riots leading to the overthrowing of the Egyptian monarchy (King Farouk) in 1952; replaced by Nasser.

By 1954, the British military, in order to repair Anglo-Egyptian relations, agreed to withdraw all troops within 20 months, maintenance of the base to be continued, and for Britain to hold the right to return for seven years. The Suez Canal Company was not due to revert to the Egyptian government until 16 November 1968 under the terms of the treaty.

Behind all this was the Arab-Israeli wars meaning tensions were high between Egypt and Israel and Nasser’s armed forces engaged in sporadic battles with Israeli soldiers along the border between the two countries.

America

For the US, keeping Soviet influence out of the Near East was a key policy aim for which Eisenhower tried to fulfill by establishing a Middle East Defense Organization (MEDO) in 1953 which was to centrered around Egypt. The CIA offered Nasser a $3 million bribe if he would join the proposed Middle East Defense Organization; Nasser took the money, but then refused to join.

The British saw the US' relationship with Nasser - who was close with some CIA agents - as an attempt by the US to push Britain out.

Eisenhower needed Nasser to unite with Britain and France against the Soviets (and therefore a shared cause) but the Egyptian PM was more concerned with dealing with Zionism than Communism. In this aim, Eisenhower wished to respect his NATO allies as well as appease Egypt.

During the conflict between British troops and the Egyptians, the US supported Egypt (verbally).

France

They held a similar stance to Britain and was definitely anti-Nasser.

Behind this was the issue of Algeria which France believed was a part of France. The French government resented Soviet involvement and their support for the National Liberation Front (FLN) there. This would become important later as Mollet sacrificed this issue for America.

Soviet Union

Instead of picking a side, Nasser kept both superpowers on side in order for them to compete against each other for his friendship.

Khrushchev had realized that by treating non-communists as being the same thing as being anti-communist, Moscow had needlessly alienated many potential friends over the years in the third world. Under the banner of anti-imperialism, Khrushchev made it clear that the Soviet Union would provide arms to any left-wing government in the third world as a way of undercutting Western influence.

The Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai met Nasser at the 1955 Bandung Conference and was impressed by him. Zhou recommended that Khrushchev treat Nasser as a potential ally.

Zhou described Nasser to Khrushchev as a young nationalist, who though no Communist, could if used correctly do much damage to Western interests in the…