Egypt-United States relations
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 Egypt |
 United States |
|---|---|
| Diplomatic Mission | |
| Egyptian Embassy, Washington, D.C. | United States Embassy, Cairo |
Egypt–United States relations refers to the current and historical relationship between Egypt and the United States.
The U.S. had minimal dealings with Egypt when it was controlled by the Ottoman Empire (before 1882) and Britain (1882–1945).
President Gamal Abdel Nasser (1952–70) antagonized the U.S. by his pro-Soviet policies and anti-Israeli rhetoric, but the U.S. helped keep him in power by forcing Britain and France to immediately end their invasion in 1956. American policy has been to provide strong support to governments that supported U.S. and Israeli interests in the region, especially presidents Anwar Sadat (1970–81) and Hosni Mubarak (1981–2011).
In 1956, the U.S. was alarmed at the closer ties between Egypt and the Soviet Union, and prepared the OMEGA Memorandum as a stick to reduce the regional power of President Gamal Abdel Nasser. When Egypt recognized Communist China, the U.S. ended talks about funding the Aswan Dam, a high prestige project much desired by Egypt. The dam was later built by the Soviet Union. When Nasser nationalized the Suez Canal in 1956, the Suez Crisis erupted with Britain and France threatening war to retake control of the canal and depose Nasser. Israel did invade the Suez in October 1956, and Britain and France (in league with Israel) sent in troops to seize the canal. Using heavy diplomatic and economic pressure, the Eisenhower administration forced Britain and France to withdraw soon, leading to a warming of relations between the U.S. and Egypt.
After the 1973 Yom Kippur War, Egyptian foreign policy began to shift as a result of the change in Egypt's leadership from the fiery Nasser to the much more moderate Anwar Sadat and the emerging peace process between Egypt and Israel. Sadat realized that reaching a settlement of the Arab–Israeli conflict is a precondition for Egyptian development. To achieve this goal, Sadat ventured to enhance U.S.–Egyptian relations to foster a peace process with Israel. After a seven-year hiatus, both countries reestablished normal diplomatic relations on February 28, 1974. In moving toward the U.S. in foreign policy, Sadat worked with President Richard Nixon to expel 20,000 Soviet technicians and soldiers and reopen the Suez Canal. Sadat opened negotiations with Israel, resulting most notably in the Camp David Accords brokered by President Jimmy Carter and made peace with Israel in a historic peace treaty in 1979. Sadat's domestic policy, called 'Infitah,' was aimed at modernizing the economy and removing Nasser's heavy-handed controls. Sadat realized American aid was essential to that goal, and it allowed him to disengage from the Israeli conflict, and to pursue a regional peace policy.
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