Means of influencing the new French Parliament to work for a formal alliance between Israel and France were considered at a meeting of leaders of the Alliance France-Israel presided over by Jacques Soustelle, president of the Alliance and Vice-Premier of France. M. Soustelle is the actual leader of the new French majority party which emerged from the elections for a new Parliament.
Gen. Koenig, former French War Minister and close personal friend of President de Gaulle, attended the meeting as did Socialist leaders Arthur Conte and Alfred Coste-Floret. The meeting was addressed by Arieh Ben Eliezer, deputy speaker of the Knesset, and president of the Israel section of the Alliance. He analyzed the situation in the Middle East.
It was noted that 80 French Cabinet Ministers and influential personalities were members of the Alliance or favorable to the creation of a formal treaty between the two countries. Among them were M. Soustelle himself, and even Premier Michel Debre who, while he has never officially committed himself, was known to favor such a step.
In Lyons last night, 2, 000 persons packed a movie theatre to hear M. Soustelle state that a Franco-Israel alliance holds the best possibility for bringing peace to the Middle East Common enemies and common dangers justify common reactions by the two countries, he asserted.
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