Israel and the European Economic Community initialed an agreement in Brussels today providing for Israel’s cooperation with the EEC in the fields of economy, industry and science. The agreement also includes a financial protocol granting Israel a $165 million loan.
The new agreement broadens the Free Trade Treaty signed by Israeli Foreign Minister Yigal Allon last May. It will allow Israel to participate in various research projects and enables Israeli industrialists to benefit from West European know how. The treaty was initialed by Itzhak Minervi, director of the Division for EEC Affairs at the Israeli Foreign Ministry, and top EEC officials this morning after a 12-hour non-stop session. The actual treaty will be signed next month in Jerusalem at the ministerial level.
The agreement, known as “The Special Protocol,” grants Israel equal rights with the Arab countries, in spite of the fact that a number of EEC officials described Israel as an industrially “developed” country in opposition to the Arab states which due to their underdevelopment were granted special rights.
The protocol’s preamble emphasizes the contribution which the nine-member states of the EEC can make in helping Israel’s economic development. Observers in Brussels said this is equivalent to a political pledge of support for the Jewish State. The EEC’s Council of Ministers is due to decide on Nov. 15 whether to grant Israel’s request for speeding up the granted loan.
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