Premier David Ben Gurion received Maj. Gen. E.L.M. Burns, United Nations truce chief, in a 45-minute session today during which the Premier reiterated Israel’s determination to defend itself from any and all attacks but at the same time offering the hand of peace to all states.
Israel’s goal is peace, the Premier told the UN official. “With all our hearts we want peace and good neighborliness and we are prepared for cooperation with all our neighbors for the prosperity and well-being of the Middle East and for the strengthening of world peace.
“We never have initiated nor will we ever initiate war against anyone,” Mr. Ben Gurion continued. “We do not covet a single inch of foreign soil, but as long as we live we will not permit anyone to rob us of a single inch of our land. We see no reason for a conflict between Egypt and ourselves; on the contrary, we see a fruitful basis for cooperation.”
(Israel’s Foreign Minister Moshe Sharett will arrive in the United States tomorrow, Thursday, for an intensive eighteen-day tour. The primary purpose of his visit is to stimulate urgent financial support of Israel’s economic development needs through the Israel Bond Drive).
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