I think Russia has influence because people assume Russia has influence - it’s inertia more than anything else.
Thant, and all those nukes.
I think that Russia has a lot of influence because of the vast natural resources that it supplies to their neighbours.
And the babushkas are extremely scary.
I live in Egypt, I’ll give you the straight dope:
First, Take anything ISIS claims with a grain of salt. They are not exactly a trustworthy organisation.Secondly, there is no proof yet of terrorism. The foreign media is going to jump on that because its sensational and gets people watching. of course some in the US government have an interest in keeping people scared.Thirdly, it is possible it was terrorism. There have been attacks on tour buses and other ground vehicles. Not by ISIS, but by Muslim brotherhood, and mainly targeting police and soldiers. MB is attacking primarily because they oppose the current Egyptian govt, however, I don’t see what they would achieve with an international attack. So, sure , possibly terrorism, but no proof yet. Of course, it bears repeating that I have NEVER met anyone who supports terrorism in Egypt they are a very slim minority among the billion or so Muslims so stop hating.