Events seem to be making obvious the fact that Gen. Naguib, new dictator of Egypt, is a man with whom the West can deal, whereas Premier Mossadegh, democratic premier of Iran, isn’t.

The British have got along so well with Naguib that they agreed recently to return to the Egyptian army a bridge over the Suez canal over which bloody battles were fought only months ago. They also have agreed to unfreeze $15 million worth of Egypt’s blocked sterling account in London.

Whether the British are misplacing their trust in Naguib remains to be seen; every evidence so far is that he is prepared to be conciliatory toward Britain, cooperative toward the West, and non-bellicose toward Israel.

Israel, on her part, agreed the same day to release $15 million in blocked accounts held by Arab refugees who fled the country during the Palestinian war. It seems clear that the atmosphere in the Eastern Mediterranean is beginning to clear.

It remains almost impossible to discover, however, the best means of dealing with Mossadegh. He has retreated from some of his more outrageous demands on Britain and the United States in the negotiations over the oil properties, but he has not abandoned all of them, and he persists in couching his demands in the form of ultimatums with ridiculously short time limits. The fact that he retreats at all suggests that he knows the weaknesses of his own position. If the stalemate persists, and Iran’s economy goes bankrupt, the Communists will move in and that will be the end of the Mossadegh regime. But the premier also appreciates the weakness of the Western position. As disastrous to Britain and the U.S. as to Mossadegh himself would be the dragging of Iran behind the Iron Curtain.

Mossadegh, meanwhile, is a negotiator whom it is almost impossible to pin down. Appeasing him probably would gain nothing. Refusing to appease him has its dangers. How do you deal with such a person?