Explain the U.S. & Russian Positions Introduction The Cold War between the superpowers of the United States and the Soviet Union was a clash of distant ideologies in a changing world. Friction developed between the two on many occasions as either side tried to expand their spheres of influence in politics, geographical surroundings, and even space. Continued clashes between the US and Soviet Union began to tense their relations during this era as it became evident to all that the cord of discontent could snap at any given moment. Nasser and the Aswan Dam Throughout the Cold War, both the United States and the Soviet Union attempted to acquire more and more territories into their spheres of influence. It was on one such occasion that Egypt became their center of attention as they both attempted to gain its favor. The Americans initially offered the Egyptian leader Nasser money in December of 1955 for the development of a dam at Aswan in order to harness the Nile for both irrigation and hydroelectric power.
English: John F. Kennedy meeting with Nikita Khrus...
English: US President Ronald Reagan and Soviet Gen...
English: President Reagan and General Secretary Go...This attempt to befriend him altered when the US became known of Nasser's arms deal with the communist satellite country of Czechoslovakia; therefore, they immediately revoked the offer. The move by the US to cancel their deal would lead to the intervention of Russia, as they were more than willing to aid Egypt in order to increase their sphere of influence in the Middle East. The Soviet Union considered the possibility that they could ultimately establish a communist government in Egypt; this action helped lead to the Suez conflict. The Cuban Missile Crisis Russian aid to the country of Cuba caused the US to be faced with the problem of nuclear missiles being within striking distance of every one of it's major cities. President Kennedy was faced...