The Israel Embassy here took a serious view today of reports, apparently true, that two West German industrial firms have given in to Arab pressure and have renounced future business deals with Israel. The firms are Thyssen and Mannesmann, both of which had sought and won contracts to supply Israel with steel pipes for the proposed Eilat to Ashdod pipeline. An Embassy spokesman said that the matter was not only a commercial but also a political issue. He said that the firms had approached Israel for the orders that could have gone to other companies. The deal involved 90,000 tons of pipe valued at $12 million.
According to reports, the Thyssen and Mannesmann companies came under heavy Arab pressure when the contracts were signed. Both subsequently wrote to the Arab Boycott office in Beirut, Lebanon, agreeing to make no further deals with Israel. The Thyssen company has already delivered 50 percent of its order to Israel but it was uncertain whether it would fulfill the balance of the contract. Spokesmen of both firms declined to comment.
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