Sen. Henry M. Jackson (D. Wash.) said here today that he had a “gut feeling” that Israel’s interests may suffer in the long run as a result of the Big Power detente. “I don’t have any evidence that the Nixon administration intends to put pressure on Israel. I only inject a word of caution, for wherever there are serious discussions going on between the super-powers, the Middle East will be one of the topics raised. I suspect that there is this danger of something coming out of these talks that might impinge on the long term interests of Israel,” Jackson said at a press conference here.
The American law-maker added that “If an unrealistic agreement is reached–if Israel is left in a position where it cannot provide for its defense–then I think we could have real trouble.” He said it was time for the U.S. government to encourage direct negotiations between Israel and Egypt “and not go around corners through third parties and all sorts of deep diplomatic fiction. At least an understanding between the Israeli government and the Egyptian government is very important,” he said.
Jackson, on a three-day visit to Israel said he was certain that the new Congress would continue to support Israel just as the previous one and said that he would continue to press the new Congress to deny the Soviet Union most favored nation status as long as the head tax remained. He is the author of an amendment to the East-West Trade Act. He paid tribute to Israel’s Ambassador to Washington, Yitzhak Rabin, as “an ambassador who has earned the highest respect from the American government and people.”
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.
