Why did Gamal Abdel Nasser support nonalignment during the Cold War?

Gamal Abdel Nasser supported nonalignment—often referred to as "positive neutrality"—as a means to assert Egypt's independence and represent the interests of developing nations during the Cold War.12

By joining leaders such as Josip Broz Tito of Yugoslavia and Jawaharlal Nehru of India in the Non-Aligned Movement, Nasser sought to avoid entanglements in the military alliances of the two superpowers, the United States and the Soviet Union. This stance was rooted in the broader goals of the movement, which emerged following World War II to promote national self-determination and oppose colonialism and imperialism.12

Rather than remaining passive, Nasser used nonalignment to give Egypt and other developing countries a collective voice in international affairs, allowing them to pursue their own political and social agendas without being forced to serve the specific interests of the "big powers".12