Snubbing U.S., Egypt agrees to open bases to Russian military jets

LONDON — Egypt, in what appears to be a snub to the Trump administration, has reached a preliminary agreement to allow Russian military jets to use its airspace and bases, both sides said Thursday.

If finalized, the agreement would give Russia its deepest presence in Egypt since 1973, when Cairo expelled the military of the Soviet Union and became Washington’s closest Arab ally.

The U.S. has provided Egypt more than $70 billion in aid in the four decades since, at a rate of more than $1.3 billion a year in recent years. The cost is often justified in part by the argument that it secures the use of Egypt’s airspace and bases for the U.S. military.

Egyptian and U.S. analysts called the preliminary deal the latest sign of the waning influence of the U.S. as President Donald Trump has diminished its military and diplomatic footprint in the region and the world.

“Power abhors a vacuum and when the United States pulls back, we can’t be under the impression that the world is going to stand by and wait for us,” said Matthew Spence, a former deputy assistant secretary of defense for Middle East policy under the Obama administration, which faced similar criticism for its policy toward the region. “The danger, and the reality, is that other countries will take advantage of the opportunity presented when America chooses to pull back.”

In practical terms, the presence of Russian jets in Egypt would raise concerns about the operational security of U.S. military personnel and require coordinating with U.S. military planes in the same airspace.

“It’s a major problem for the United States-Egypt defense relationship,” said Andrew Miller, a former senior State Department official who is now at the Project on Middle East Democracy.

It was unclear to what extent Washington was informed about the agreement. The Trump administration has not yet replaced the ambassador to Cairo, whose three-year term ended in July.

Edgar Vasquez, a State Department spokesman, said only, “We are aware of these reports and are monitoring the situation.”

News of the preliminary agreement came as the U.S. diplomatic corps has been severely reduced and American foreign policy is facing challenges from all corners.

In the Middle East, the administration has no assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs or ambassadors to Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Jordan or Qatar.

The Obama administration had been criticized by allies for retreating from the Middle East, in particular for failing to intervene aggressively enough against the Iranian- and Russianbacked government of President Bashar Assad of Syria in his civil war against rebels challenging his rule.

Under Mr. Trump, the U.S. has further reduced its support for Syrian rebels, backed off its onetime goal of removing Mr. Assad from power, and taken a back seat to Moscow in the Syrian peace process.

President Vladimir Putin of Russia has expanded Moscow’s influence in the Middle East, seeking to regain influence lost with the collapse of the Soviet Union, the end of the Cold War and the expansion of America’s military presence around the Persian Gulf and elsewhere.