Egypt Was A Willing Participant
Reader comment on item: The Soviets' Six-Day War

Submitted by Andrew Stunich (United States), May 29, 2007 at 17:45

This new book may add greater detail, but the USSR's involvement in helping start the Six-Day War has not been as well kept of a secret as the Soviets would have preferred. I remember watching a PBS documentary years ago entitled "The 50 Years War" wherein the Six Day War was portrayed as initiating with the Soviet Union. The PBS documentary also showed that Egypt sent out reconnaissance flights that revealed that Israel was not amassing troops and materiel on anyone's boarders as alleged by the Soviets.

Nonetheless, Egypt and Nasser chose to respond belligerently anyway. Gamal Abdel Nasser was a willing participant in the deception, as was Syria. Jordan may have been a reluctant participant, but even with respect to Jordan, Israel assured Jordan that it would not attack unless and until Jordan initiated hostilities. I question whether the USSR really started the war or simpy was helping Egypt foment a conflict that it otherwise intended on commencing anyway. At best, the USSR may have prompted Egypt into an earlier conflict. In my opinion, Nasser's statements and actions at the time reveal that he fully intended to attack Isarel eventually.

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