Egypt's Open Secret

Egyptian President Anwar Sadat's personal distaste for his Russian allies has long been one of the worst-kept secrets in the Arab world. Sadat is not given to making his private views public. But observers close to the Cairo scene report that Egyptian-Soviet relations are now at their lowest point since Sadat's Cabinet purge last year, when he first realized the full extent of Russian infiltration of Egypt's political and administrative apparatus.

In part, the antagonism reflects a conflict in styles. The elegant Egyptian President, whose tastes in tailoring run to Savile Row suits, finds the Russians crude and boorish. But there are substantive disagreements as well. Sadat's disillusionment grew after his visit to Moscow last February. There he discovered that the Kremlin was not prepared to deliver on all of his hefty requests for more arms. Sadat, moreover, resents playing the role of broker for Russian interests elsewhere in the Arab world. His trips to such vocally anti-Communist states as Libya and the Sudan, where he has recently tried to patch up the tattered Russian image, are known to anger him deeply.

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