ABSTRACT
The administration was contemplating how it would respond to the Soviet-Egyptian arms deal and wondering if it could keep Nasser from irretrievably aligning Egypt with the Soviet bloc. The Soviets, however, had responded with the arms deal with Egypt, and contrary to the "Munich mentality" of the administration that would color most other aspects of its foreign policy, the United States, within this narrow context, appeared to be interested in appeasing Nasser and the Kremlin. The United States shared the goal of the British-Iraqi plans to replace the Syrian regime with one that was pro-Iraqi and pro-West, but differed on the timing and the means. London continued in its attempt to convince the administration that using the Iraqis was the proper policy, claiming that this approach could achieve their combined goals in Syria through "seduction rather than rape."
