ABSTRACT
THE PERIOD after the fall of the Iraqi monarchy saw an interregnum in Britain’s policy towards Nasser and, more generally, in its broader Middle Eastern strategy. A series of debates took place within the British government about how to approach the completely changed strategic situation. The pursuit of an accommodation with the new Iraqi regime was one favoured option for a time. There was also a wider debate about how to proceed with Anglo-Egyptian relations and as to whether Britain (with American help) should seek a final confrontation with Nasser while Western military superiority over the Soviet Union still existed.
