Former West German Defense Minister Franz Josef Strauss repeated at a press conference here yesterday the conviction he expressed on his recent visit to Israel that West Germany should move now to establish full diplomatic ties with Israel “as an act of historical reparation. “
Strauss, who is the leader of the Bavarian branch of Chancellor Konrad Adenauer’s Government party, said he understood that the Chancellor was considering seriously the proposal for diplomatic ties with Israel. He dismissed possible Arab counter-reactions with a reiteration of another statement he made in Israel to the effect that “we cannot let others decide what we should do. “
The former Defense Minister also repeated another assurance given in Israel that he would seek legal and practical steps to prevent West German scientists from working on advanced weapons systems for Egypt. He insisted that the ground-to-ground rocket now under development in Egypt with West German scientific aid, had a “poor electronic guidance system” and that the effect of the missile was mainly psychological. He said he had found the Israelis, during his 11-day visit, to be very concerned about their security because of threats from the Arab states.
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