Iran Refers to Egypt’s Blockade Against Israel at London Parley

Dr. A.G.R. Ardalen, Iranian delegation chief to the 22-nation International Conference here on Egypt’s seizure of the Suez Canal, is the first Moslem or Asian representative to call the attention of the Conference to Egypt’s boycott against Israel shipping through the Canal.

Declaring that Iran was “motivated by a sense of the right of nations and international justice,” Dr. Ardalen asked the Conference to recall that the Constantinople Convention of 1888 required freedom of passage through the Suez for all shipping, and that the Anglo-Egyptian agreement of 1954 for the evacuation of British forces from the Canal Zone made the same requirement. Then Dr. Ardalen continued.

“In the United Nations, too, whenever the question of the Canal has come up for discussion, the principle of freedom of navigation in respect of this waterway was reaffirmed. As an example, I would cite the resolution of September 1, 1951, in which the Security Council called upon the Egyptian government to terminate restrictions on passage of international commercial shipping and goods through the Suez Canal wherever bound, and to observe international conventions.”

In Cairo, Egyptian President Nasser said last night that Egyptian nationalization of the Suez Canal Company had nothing to do with the question of free passage through the waterway. He said Egypt had control of canal security since long before nationalization was effected, and pointed out that the current blockade against Israeli traffic was begun even before the British began evacuating the Suez Canal Zone.