Israel will resubmit her application for United Nations membership at the earliest opportune moment, well-informed Israeli circles indicated here today. At the same time, Israeli leaders here expressed surprise at Canada’s abstention in the Security Council vote since the head of the Canadian delegation had promised the Israeli envoys that Canada would support Israel’s membership bid, once a political resolution on Palestine had been adopted by the General Assembly.
Israeli representative to the U.N. Aubrey S. Eban, in a statement to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, declared: “It is naturally disappointing to find that the Security Council still hesitates to contribute to peace in the Middle East by the admission of Israel to the status of equality with the Arab states.
“The Government of Israel was fully Justified in submitting this application. To have refrained from doing so would have implied acquiescence in a collection of unconvincing, half-hearted arguments put forward by certain delegations in favor of delay.
“The whole-hearted support of the United States and Russia and the Ukraine, although well-known in advance, found renewed and eloquent expression as a result of this application. To this must now be added the remarkable speeches of the representatives of Argentina and Colombia, which constitute a notable reinforcement of Israel’s position in the Latin American world.
“The arguments advanced in favor of delay were too unsubstantiated to merit analysis at this stage. Indeed no delegation except the Syrian could even expect to deny the fact of Israel’s firmly established statehood. Israel, which has so many obstacles imposed upon it by the Security Council, has the duty to claim its just rights under the provisions of the U.N. Charter.”
Eban will soon go to Israel to participate in important deliberations there. After a brief stay at Tel Aviv, he is expected to leave for Lake Success in January to resume his post as permanent representative of Israel at the U.N. He will be in Paris for several more days.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
