Israel did ask West Germany for a $70,000,000 loan against reparations payments, as reported in the German press last week, a spokesman for the Bonn Foreign Office confirmed today. The reports revealing that the Israeli request had been made, said that the government had “turned a cold shoulder” to Israel’s loan suggestion.
The Foreign Office spokesman, confirming the reported loan request, declared, however, that no decision has as yet been made by the government.
Informed sources here pointed out today that the Israeli request is strictly with in the terms of the German-Israel Reparations Treaty which pledged Germany to try to increase reparations installments “insofar as possible,” and to pay installments ahead of time “in the event that Germany obtains financial relief from external sources.” The Israeli request, as reported, asked that Germany lend the $70,000,000 to the Jewish State out of its vast accumulation of negotiable monies in the European Payments Union.
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