Egypt’s Morsi Upsets Iran
The Egyptian president's visit to Iran has not pleased his hosts as much as expected, Al-Monitor's Barbara Slavin reports in Tehran. In a speech, Morsi highlighted the Syrian opposition’s struggle against the "oppressive system there," unnerving the Iranians, allies of the Syrian regime. Iranian newscasts omitted key bits in televised coverage.
TEHRAN — A resurgent and boldly independent Egypt on Thursday upset Iranian plans for a smoothly-oiled summit that Iranian officials hoped would demonstrate that the Islamic Republic has more friends than foes.
Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi — whose brief trip here was criticized in advance by Israel and the United States — delivered a nuanced speech that targeted some US and Israeli policies but also adamantly backed the Syrian opposition’s struggle to overturn “the oppressive system there.”
