Eisenhower Says Moscow and Nasser Foment Trouble in Middle East

President Eisenhower today issued a statement charging that strife in Lebanon “has been actively fomented by Soviet and Cairo broadcasts and abetted and aided by substantial amounts of arms, money and personnel infiltrated into Lebanon across the Syrian border.” He said the revolt in Iraq and an attempted coup d’etat in Jordan demonstrated “a scope of aggressive purpose” which Lebanon could not combat without U.S. military intervention.

Mr. Eisenhower said: “What we now see in the Middle East is the same pattern of conquest with which we became familiar during the period of 1945 to 1950. This involves taking over a nation by means of indirect aggression; that is, under the cover of a fomented civil strife the purpose is to put into domestic control those whose real loyalty is to the aggressor.”

He said it was by such means that Communists took over Czechoslovakia in 1948, mainland China in 1949, and attempted to take over Greece, Indochina and Korea. The President pointed out that the Soviet Union claimed that the Korean conflict was only a civil war “but all the world knew that the North Koreans were armed, equipped and directed from without for the purpose of aggression.”

“Indirect aggression and violence are being promoted in the Near East in clear violation of the provisions of the United Nations Charter.” the President charged. “If ever the United States fails to support these principles the result would be to open the flood gates to direct and indirect aggression throughout the world.”

Mr. Eisenhower said that in the 1930’s the League of Nations indifference to direct an indirect aggression encouraged and stimulated aggressive forces “that made World War II inevitable.” Therefore, the President said, “the United States is determined that history shall not now be repeated.”