Soviet-Egyptian political relations in the views of the Egyptian publicist Mohamed Heikal

Abstract

The article is devoted to the activities of Egyptian publicist Mohamed Hassanein Heikal and his views on Soviet-Egyptian political relations in the second half of the 20th century. In the early 1950s Heikal took a high place among Egypt’s popular writers. He is considered the first correspondent of Arab modern journalism, which absorbed some Western approaches and traditions. The political life that was unfolding before his eyes, the friendship with President Gamal Abd Nasser, many trips to different countries of the world, shaped his rich experience as a journalist. The materials of the study were the books of Mohamed Hassanein Heikal, reflecting the diplomatic relations of the two countries. The article notes that throughout his activities Haikal advocated the establishment of Soviet-Egyptian relations and praised the role of the USSR in supporting Egypt. He wrote about this in several journalistic books “For Egypt, not for Nasser”, “Sphinx and the Commissioner”, “Cairo Documents” and “Soviet Earthquake”, based on documents and personal impressions of events which he witnessed personally. The books of Egyptian journalist and publicist Mohamed Hassanein Heikal, his views are a reflection of the realities of the modern Arab world. Heikal School - School of Journalism. Submitting information in his newspaper Al-Ahram, he analyzed events, relying on facts and documents, thereby influencing the minds of readers. Heikal worked in various directions, created a center for strategic policy research, which studied the influence of the West on the Middle East. Heikal's work was described as “controversial”, “intriguing”, “based on the unique information” of this “most informed journalist in the Arab world”.