Canadian Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent, at a press conference here, rejected Arab protests against the Canadian decision to sell Israel 24 Canadian-manufactured jet fighters.
Defending his government’s action, Mr. St. Laurent insisted that the sale of planes to Israel would not increase tension or upset the power balance in the Middle East. He noted that the Arabs could obtain all the arms they want from Soviet bloc countries or other sources, which Israel’s sources of supply were limited. However, he indicated that Canada was not the only country providing Israel with defensive weapons.
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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.