President Kennedy “expressed a cordial interest in United States-United Arab Republic relations,” Ambassador-designate John S. Badeau told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency yesterday after a 45-minute meeting at the White House with the President. Dr. Badeau will be the new U.S. envoy to Cairo.
A discussion was held of recent trends and developments in the Near East, including Moscow-Cairo differences and U.S. support of renewed United Nations efforts to solve the Arab refugee problem, Dr. Badeau indicated.
Dr. Badeau said Mr. Kennedy gave him a general briefing on policies and duties to be pursued in Cairo. The new ambassador said President Kennedy’s “feeling toward the United Arab Republic is one of desiring effective mutual relations between us.” He said that he would convey the verbal greetings of President Kennedy to President Nasser but said he was taking no written message from the White House to President Nasser.
Dr. Badeau indicated he was impressed with President Kennedy’s detailed knowledge of Near East problems and expressed optimism at the future course of American relations with the Nasser regime.
The meeting was originally scheduled to last only 15 minutes because of the President’s crowded schedule and painful backache but it lasted an additional 30 minutes owing to the current interest of the President in relations between the U.S. and the United Arab Republic, according to Dr. Badeau.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
