Israel wants Britain to furnish it with Centurion tanks which, in the view of Israel’s defense forces, is capable of counter-balancing those of the United Arab Republic, the Daily Telegraph reported today. The report emphasized that Stalin Mark III and T-54 tanks were obtained by the UAR from the Soviet Union.
According to the newspaper, Israel Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion told President Eisenhower and British Premier Harold Macmillan that Israel does not expect to be armed “tank for tank” against the UAR. The Israeli Premier is said to have told the American and British statesmen he would be satisfied if the UAR had no more than a two-to-one lead in tanks and jet planes. “Israel’s superior fighting morale would be relied upon to make up the difference, “the Telegraph states.
The newspaper states further that “there is little chance” of Israel obtaining from Britain any ground-to-air missiles, since “there are no known missiles of any origin in the Middle East now, and it would be a grave step for Israel to take the lead in that respect.”
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