Egypt Rejects US Requests to Block Russian Military Flights
Washington is trying to pressure Egypt into closing its airspace for all Russian military flights, but the regional US ally isn’t having it, which also awkwardly comes following a recent Pentagon leak showing Cairo planned to supply Moscow with rockets.
“Egypt has ignored U.S. requests to close its airspace to Russian military flights, American and Egyptian officials said, testing the limits of Washington’s ability to choke off Moscow’s supplies ahead of an expected Ukrainian counteroffensive,” The Wall Street Journal reports Friday.
“The U.S. and Ukraine persuaded countries including Turkey, Jordan and Iraq to cut access for at least some Russian military planes last year after the invasion of Ukraine, forcing Moscow’s aircraft to fly 2,000 extra miles and up to five hours further to reach strategic bases in Syria,” the report continues.
Washington’s concern is that Russia has likely been using Egyptian airspace to transport weapons from its arms depots elsewhere in the Middle East – for example in Syria where since 2015 it’s had a significant military build-up, particularly focused along the coast.
