Secretary of State John Foster Dulles indicated today at a press conference that the Gaza incident caused a setback to American plans to extend security consideration desired by Israel.
The Secretary was asked about the present status of high-level American-Israel talks that have been in progress for several months. As a result of Western arrangements with the Arabs, Israel has sought a guarantee of its territorial integrity and a redress of the balance of power in the region.
Mr. Dulles said a continuous and intensive study of the situation had been made with a view to finding out what, if anything, could be done to stabilize the area and establish peaceful conditions.
The U.S. studies have been made more difficult, he said, by incidents which create new conditions in the area which require the U.S. to change its time schedule or reconsider certain aspects of the matter. He explained that the State Department was dealing with a situation which is not itself static while it is dealing with it.
Therefore, he said, it is not easy to make rapid progress. However, he was hopeful that something would emerge before very long if the situation remains sufficiently quiet so that the U.S. does not have to put its plans on the shelf.
Asked by a reporter if he referred to a defense guarantee for Israel, the Secretary said he did not care to elaborate. He revealed that he and Ambassador Abba Eban had had a continuous and intensive study of the Arab-Israel situation with a view to finding out what could be done to stabilize the area and to establish peaceful conditions.
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