Tara Todras-Whitehill/AP/Press Association Images. All rights reserved.Long before the term was coined, Egyptians had been very proud of their country’s “soft power,” and rightly so. In the Arab world, Egypt is the most populous country and it has the most potent army, a pivotal location and an influential intelligentsia.
If Cairo sneezed, it was commonly said, the whole region would catch a cold. There could be no Arab war against Israel without Egypt, as former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger said. Indeed, Egypt was the trendsetter of the region, paving the way for war and peace negotiations with Israel in the 1950s and 1970s, respectively.
Furthermore, the manifestations of Egypt’s cultural influence are ubiquitous. Unlike other Arab dialects, colloquial Egyptian is widely understood and quite popular. The presence of Egypt’s arts - music, film, and television series - can be seen in almost every corner of the region.
