Central Treaty Organization
Nasser's considerations for sending troops to Yemen may have included the following: (1) impact of his support to the Algerian War of Independence from 1954–62; (2) Syria breaking up from Nasser's UAR in 1961; (3) taking advantage of a breach in British and French relations, which had been strained by Nasser's support for the FLN in Algeria and primarily for his efforts to undermine the Central Treaty Organization (CENTO), which caused the downfall of the Iraqi monarchy in 1958; (4) confronting imperialism, which Nasser saw as Egypt's destiny; (5) guaranteeing dominance of the Red Sea from the Suez Canal to the Bab-el-Mandeb strait; (6) retribution against the Saudi royal family, whom Nasser felt had undermined his union with Syria.