Can there be an Arab world without Egypt? Egypt is a centerpiece of that world; its diplomatic defection raises awesome geopolitical and cultural problems. Other Arabs may shout and call for sanctions, but what are they to do without a society that, for all its problems, remains the heart of the ArabMoslem order? Likewise, what are the prospects for an Egypt alienated from her Arab habitat? Will Egypt's American connection pay off and sustain her in the short run? Will it bring other Arab states around, or will it deepen the crisis of the Egyptian order, pushing Egypt's isolation beyond tolerable economic and cultural limits?
No takes yet. Share an insight, caveat, or question.
Fouad Ajami (1979) studied this question.