Egypt's Strongman Gamal Abdel Nasser last week defended his purchase of
arms from the Communists, denied that he intends to start a war with
Israel, and behaved like a man convinced that his spoon is long enough
to sup with the devil.”I know they are saying that [Soviet Ambassador Daniil] Solod is the
world's | greatest salesman,” Nasser told TIME-LIFECorrespondent Keith Wheeler, in a midnight interview at his house, “but
that is not quite the way it was. It was my own idea. I had hesitated
for two months, but at last in June, I called for Solod and I said:
'Sell us arms.' Really, I was surprised when he accepted.”Today, after we have made the arms deal, people are talking that Israel
may start a preventive war. But I have been expecting them to start a
war ever since they attacked Gaza on Feb. 28. Otherwise, I would not
have bought arms and would have saved the money instead.”These weapons are to defend Egypt. They are not to attack Israel. I
cannot say how many weapons we need or will take. In war you cannot
draw a hard line between defense and offense. As a military man, all I
can tell you about that is that it depends on what the other fellow
has.””Nobody Knows.” But was he not opening the way to the Russians with his
arms purchases? “There are not now any Russian or Czech technicians in
Egypt,” replied Nasser. “A long time before this, we sent some of our
best men to Czecho slovakia for training. Some have already finished
their training and are back here now, instructing other officers and
men. We will do our own maintenance and training. Really, I will tell
you: my men have been able to assemble some airplanes using only the
handbooks for instruction.”That was the closest Nasser came to admitting that MIGs had already been
delivered. He declined to talk about the tanks, heavy guns, bombers and
submarines the Communists were reported sending him. “Everybody wants
to know what was in the 133 boxes unloaded at Alexandria,” he said,
taking obvious satisfaction in the amount of attention the world has
given him, “but nobody knows and nobody is going to know. For the first
time in history, our army has secrets.”The Nature of Gratitude. Nasser insisted that the deal did not mean
that Egypt had chosen to join the Reds against the West. “When you did
not help us win our freedom,” he said, “when you took the side of your
allies Britain and France, we felt betrayed and disappointed in you . .
. Now naturally, the people are going to feel sympathy and gratitude
toward the Russians. But gratitude is not the same thing as Communist
principles. Indeed, the greatest thing the arms deal has done is to
give our people a feeling of pride in themselves and pride in their
country.”
