 In 1955 Pearson offered him the ambassadorship to Egypt.Norman arrived on the eve of the Suez Crisis of late 1956, and played a key role as a neutral between the Egyptian leader Gamal Abdel Nasser and the western powers.As negotiations developed among the Americans, British, Israelis, and Egyptians, some in the American government feared that Nasser was becoming pro-Soviet and that Norman was abetting him.