Gamal Abdel Nasser, the president of Egypt after the ouster of King Farouk in 1952, was planning to build the Aswan Dam on the Nile river. The Aswan Dam idea was Nasser’s economic stimulus package plan for making Egypt a rich, industrialized country. It would generate a massive amount of hydroelectricity and this would allow the Egyptians to increase industrialization and improve their economy. It would also control flooding of the Nile and allow water to be stored for irrigation of agriculture. The cost of constructing the dam was very high, 400 million dollars, and Nasser needed international help to build it. He looked to the western countries who had long histories of colonial control and economic investment in Egypt for economic support. Nasser requested funding for the dam from the World Bank, which was essentially controlled by the United States.
There were constant tensions with Israel, Egypt’s neighbor to the east. Nasser, in addition to wanting funding for the dam, also wanted to buy weapons from the United States, to address those tensions. Leery of providing arms for a conflict between Israel and Egypt, the U.S. stipulated that any weapons sold would have to be used only for defensive, not offensive purposes. Also, part of the deal was to be that U.S. personnel would have to provide all training for those weapons sold. Nasser disagreed, believing that he should be able to determine the use of any weapons he purchased, without U.S. involvement in the decision. As a result of Nasser’s disagreement with the weapons stipulations, he declined the offer.
Nasser, still seeking funding and weapons, yet wanting to remain independent from the influences of both the United States and the Soviet Union, made an arms deal with Czechoslovakia in September, 1955. This was seen by U.S. Secretary of State, John Foster Dulles, as an Egyptian alignment with the Soviets, or at least a manipulation of the cold war powers, and in July of 1956, the U.S., through the World Bank, pulled their support of funding for the Aswan Dam.
One week later, on July 26, 1956, when his western funding plan was thwarted, Nasser wanted revenge, so he nationalized the Suez Canal. Nationalizing the canal meant that Egyptians took control of the canal operations and were able to profit from its operation. Nasser wanted the Egyptians to control the Suez Canal company and all access to the Suez Canal. He saw this as the solution to funding his construction of the Aswan Dam without external powers controlling the purse strings.
The Suez Canal is a human-made waterway that connects the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea, allowing shipping to travel directly to the Indian Ocean instead of having to travel all the way around Africa. Canal construction took 10 years and it opened in 1869. That whole time it was operated by Britain and France and staffed by Europeans. It was a very important route for the shipment of oil to these former colonial powers.
Egyptian control of the Suez Canal was an economic threat to Britain and France, and a military threat to Israel. The French, British and Israeli governments had a secret pact, called the Protocol of Sevres, made in October of 1956, that was designed to topple Nasser’s government, through the invasion and occupation of the Suez Canal zone, as a result of Nasser’s nationalization of it. This pact was invoked in late 1956, causing France and Britain and Israel to invade Egypt. The Israelis invaded the Suez Peninsula, the British and French sent in paratroopers. The Canal was damaged and navigation was closed.
Canadian Secretary of State for External Affairs, Lester B Pearson, proposed to the United Nations to create a peace keeping force separating the parties in conflict. The majority of U.N countries voted in agreement of this proposal. The UN peacekeeping mission was formed as a result. Pearson was later awarded a Nobel Peace Prize for this action.
U.S. President, Dwight D. Eisenhower, pressured the U.K to disengage from the conflict with a threat to destabilize the British financial system through a sale of U.S. Sterling bonds. Ultimately Britain and France backed down and Israel withdrew troops from the peninsula.
The canal was closed from October 1956 to March 1957 until it was repaired and reopened with U.N. assistance. The United Nations Emergency Force or UNEF was established to open and maintain free access and navigation on the Suez Canal.
Sources:
http://www.history.com/topics/cold-war/suez-crisis
http://www.history.com/news/ask-history/what-was-the-suez-crisis
http://adst.org/2016/06/dont-give-dam-feud-financing-aswan-high-dam/#.Wj6TQFQ-dXg
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suez_Canal
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suez_Crisis
http://plaza.ufl.edu/laura21/history.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Emergency_Force
Published by Liam Buche-Pattison
There were constant tensions with Israel, Egypt’s neighbor to the east. Nasser, in addition to wanting funding for the dam, also wanted to buy weapons from the United States, to address those tensions. Leery of providing arms for a conflict between Israel and Egypt, the U.S. stipulated that any weapons sold would have to be used only for defensive, not offensive purposes. Also, part of the deal was to be that U.S. personnel would have to provide all training for those weapons sold. Nasser disagreed, believing that he should be able to determine the use of any weapons he purchased, without U.S. involvement in the decision. As a result of Nasser’s disagreement with the weapons stipulations, he declined the offer.
Nasser, still seeking funding and weapons, yet wanting to remain independent from the influences of both the United States and the Soviet Union, made an arms deal with Czechoslovakia in September, 1955. This was seen by U.S. Secretary of State, John Foster Dulles, as an Egyptian alignment with the Soviets, or at least a manipulation of the cold war powers, and in July of 1956, the U.S., through the World Bank, pulled their support of funding for the Aswan Dam.
One week later, on July 26, 1956, when his western funding plan was thwarted, Nasser wanted revenge, so he nationalized the Suez Canal. Nationalizing the canal meant that Egyptians took control of the canal operations and were able to profit from its operation. Nasser wanted the Egyptians to control the Suez Canal company and all access to the Suez Canal. He saw this as the solution to funding his construction of the Aswan Dam without external powers controlling the purse strings.
The Suez Canal is a human-made waterway that connects the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea, allowing shipping to travel directly to the Indian Ocean instead of having to travel all the way around Africa. Canal construction took 10 years and it opened in 1869. That whole time it was operated by Britain and France and staffed by Europeans. It was a very important route for the shipment of oil to these former colonial powers.
Egyptian control of the Suez Canal was an economic threat to Britain and France, and a military threat to Israel. The French, British and Israeli governments had a secret pact, called the Protocol of Sevres, made in October of 1956, that was designed to topple Nasser’s government, through the invasion and occupation of the Suez Canal zone, as a result of Nasser’s nationalization of it. This pact was invoked in late 1956, causing France and Britain and Israel to invade Egypt. The Israelis invaded the Suez Peninsula, the British and French sent in paratroopers. The Canal was damaged and navigation was closed.
Canadian Secretary of State for External Affairs, Lester B Pearson, proposed to the United Nations to create a peace keeping force separating the parties in conflict. The majority of U.N countries voted in agreement of this proposal. The UN peacekeeping mission was formed as a result. Pearson was later awarded a Nobel Peace Prize for this action.
U.S. President, Dwight D. Eisenhower, pressured the U.K to disengage from the conflict with a threat to destabilize the British financial system through a sale of U.S. Sterling bonds. Ultimately Britain and France backed down and Israel withdrew troops from the peninsula.
The canal was closed from October 1956 to March 1957 until it was repaired and reopened with U.N. assistance. The United Nations Emergency Force or UNEF was established to open and maintain free access and navigation on the Suez Canal.
Sources:
http://www.history.com/topics/cold-war/suez-crisis
http://www.history.com/news/ask-history/what-was-the-suez-crisis
http://adst.org/2016/06/dont-give-dam-feud-financing-aswan-high-dam/#.Wj6TQFQ-dXg
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suez_Canal
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suez_Crisis
http://plaza.ufl.edu/laura21/history.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Emergency_Force
Published by Liam Buche-Pattison