“Briefings on the balance of military forces in the Middle East indicate that both the Arab states and Israel are better armed than before the Yom Kippur War. But “the balance leans heavily in favor of the Arab states,” according to an article in the current issue of “NATO’s 15 Nations,” a privately published bimonthly magazine that specializes in discussions of armaments.
“NATO’s 15 Nations” describes itself as an “independent review of economic, political and military power.” Its editorial network is led by the Monch Publishing Group whose executive office is in Bonn, West Germany. Jupp Monch is president.
It issues, magazines mainly in German and English but also publishes a quarterly in Spanish and Portuguese. Johannes Steinhoof, a retired German Air Force general, is chairman of the editorial board. Its editorial director is Sir John Baraclough, RAF retired, a former British Air Marshal. Israel is listed among the scores of countries where the magazine has offices. The address there is the Marketing Systems Developing Co. in Tel Aviv.
ISRAEL IMPATIENT WITH ITS FRIENDS
According to the article, the Arab p{SPAN}###onderance in weaponry is “offset only by Widely reported rumors that Israel for some time now has a nuclear capability and the determination to use it if necessary.”Another point made in the article. bylined Bonner H. Day, is that Israelis feel “that the Arabs, the Soviet Union and even the U.S. are faking actions contrary to Israeli interests” and{/SPAN}
This according to the writer, ” is at once a symbol of this country’s (Israel) growing impatience with friends abroad and self doubts over diplomatic and military policies at home.”
The article, titled “Israel’s Quest for Military Independence,” indicated that the Arab states have a decided edge over Israel in aircraft and tanks. “The total Arab fighter and at tack plane force against Israel totals more than 1700 planes,” the writer said. “Several hundred more are on order from the U.S., the Soviet Union and Western Europe.” Egypt, with 500 combat aircraft and Syria with 450 form the “leading edge.” Israel, by contrast, is thought to have about one-third the air fleet. And the Israeli Air Force, “long considered the main arm of the country’s defense, continues to undergo reexamination in light of its performance in the 1973 war.”
The writer said that according to Israeli estimates , the Arab confrontation states, have 34 divisions and 10,000 tanks compared to 27 divisions and 7000 tanks of the NATO countries Israel’s figures were not given.
The article stated that ” Israel and its Arab neighbors are in their greatest arms race yet, ” but at the same time , Israeli leaders are increasingly concerned over the Soviet Union’s growing influence and presence in the Horn of Africa and the Arabian peninsula . In Israel, in fast, there is a growing feeling that the Arabs are not the principal foe but rather a pawn of the real enemy, the Soviet Union.”
The writer reported that Israeli ” government leaders are still in a state of shock and disappointment at the delays and reluctance that colored the support the U.S. gave Israel in the 1973 war … As for West Europe , several leaders expressed to me their disgust of its role during the war with the Arab states. ‘ It is obvious Europe values oil more than its international reputation, ‘ one high placed Israeli remarked.”
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.
