After yesterday's shocking revelations about Egyptian opinion of Israel, it was announced today that President Hosni Mubarak intends to visit Moscow this week in order to strengthen economic and political relations with the Russian federation. Vladimir Putin became the first Russian President to set foot in Egypt for 40 years when he visited the country last year. Putin hopes to help Egypt build more nuclear power plants - as they are doing in Iran, and aims to bolster Russian influence in Middle East politics. 

Quote: "Mr Mubarak has recently proposed reviving Egypt's nuclear energy programme, which was abandoned after the Chernobyl disaster 20 years ago, and it is thought the leaders will discuss nuclear co-operation. They are also likely to talk about increased Russian arms sales to Egypt - something that will not impress the United States, Egypt's traditional arms supplier, our correspondent says. The Middle East conflict is also on the agenda. The Russian Foreign Ministry stressed Egypt's "leading political role in the region" and Russia's "weighty involvement" in attempts to pursue peace.

This also from my friend Alan, in response to yesterday's comments on a future Israeli-Egyptian war, as prophesied in Scripture...

Quote: "A well know fact in the Middle East is that if Israel were ever to be threatened by Egypt and it looked like Israel would lose, the Israelis will hit the Aswan Dam with a nuke. 2000 square miles of water would be released. A friend of mine many years ago was teaching a Bible study in Cairo and afterwards was invited to home of a high Egyptian official. In conversation my friend mentioned this fact and the effect it would have on Cairo. The official said not to worry. We expect the Israelis to do this but we have mined the Nile in such a way that we can divert it into the Rea Sea. Ergo, Is 19:1.

Isaiah 19:4-7
And the Egyptians will I give over into the hand of a cruel lord; and a fierce king shall rule over them, saith the Lord, the LORD of hosts. And the waters shall fail from the sea, and the river shall be wasted and dried up. And they shall turn the rivers far away; and the brooks of defence shall be emptied and dried up: the reeds and flags shall wither. The paper reeds by the brooks, by the mouth of the brooks, and every thing sown by the brooks, shall wither, be driven away, and be no more.

Isaiah 11:15 
And the LORD shall utterly destroy the tongue of the Egyptian sea; and with his mighty wind shall he shake his hand over the river, and shall smite it in the seven streams, and make men go over dryshod.

Meanwhile, the European Union is continuing clandestine efforts to secure a peace agreement in the Middle East by the end of the year. Envoys from five EU states arrived in Damascus within last week, after a long period of isolation following the assassination of the anti-Syrian Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Harari. Germany and Spain sent their Foreign Ministers (including Spanish Foreign Minister Moratinos, who is pressing for a new peace initiative in the Middle East), while France, the UK and Poland sent high-ranking politicians to meet with their Syrian counterparts.

Quote: "Diplomatic sources told the London-based Arabic language newspaper Al-Hayat that, "Feelers being sent out by Western states towards Syria are in their infancy, and are meant to get a sense of how Syria plans deals with a range of issues, notably, Iraq, Lebanon, the Palestinian issue, as well as the willingness of Syria to play a constructive role in these matters." 

It seems the EU are determined to push Bashar Assad away from Iran's hard line position, and into a possible peace agreement with Israel. This follows Javier Solana's 6 day tour of the region. 

Source BBC, YNet News