Soviet Intervention Would Reverse Washington

British and French forces were still formidable opponents. If the Soviet Union attacked them on Egypt's behalf, American politics would recast Nasser as a communist-aligned adversary rather than an anticolonial nationalist. Longstanding friendship with Britain and France, combined with the Cold War principle that an enemy of Moscow was a potential ally, would then favour extensive American support. Even if the United States did not enter combat immediately, military aid would become far more likely. Superpower intervention could therefore reverse Washington's position without changing the original Anglo-French operation.