Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi’s popularity is on the decline as a result of his inability to deliver on his extravagant economic promises, renowned American historian and the Director of the Centre for Middle Eastern and North African Studies at the University of Michigan, Professor Juan Cole, predicted.
“As Al-Sisi sinks, so will the American reputation, if Trump lionises him,” Cole said in an article posted on his website, Informed Comment.
The article titled “America’s Major Challenges in Middle East Policy, in 2017” said that Iran represents a clear problem for Trump due to the profound division between those determined to avoid deep entanglements in the Middle East, such as Donald J. Trump himself, and those he is putting in key positions who desperately want to overthrow the Islamic Republic of Iran.
According to the author, “Moscow now views Iran as a Russian client in the region, and would really mind if the US did interfere in Iran.”
However, the author added that the US is the only force capable of eliminating Daesh in its home base of Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor provinces in Syria, pointing out that until now both Russia and Turkey have not shown interest in fighting Daesh in Syria.