Sen. Jacob K. Javits warned here yesterday that the Nixon Administration was following “a course of great potential danger” in withholding approval of Israel’s request to purchase more Phantom and Sky hawk jets. Addressing a luncheon meeting of the Foreign Policy Association, the New York Republican said “An arms limitation agreement is clearly a policy which the U.S. is following in the Mideast,” but it requires the cooperation of the Soviet Union. “The Soviet decision to provide advanced surface-to-air missiles to Egypt–and the necessary technical personnel to man these weapons–coming on the heels of France’s deal to sell over 100 Mirage jets to Libya invalidates the premise that U.S. ‘restraint’ in selling arms to Israel will influence the USSR to curtail its provision of arms to Israel’s Arab enemies,” Sen. Javits said.
“Given the important consideration of lead time for delivery and deployment of such complicated weaponry as Phantoms and Sky hawks, there is very little time available for the Administration’s efforts to enlist Soviet cooperation in arms limitations through a policy of denying arms to Israel for ‘demonstration effect,’ ” according to the Senator. “Certainly,” he added, “the search for an arms limitation agreement will continue to have high priority according to present U.S. policy. But a U.S. policy of arms denial to Israel for ‘demonstration effect’ could come into conflict with a higher priority–the necessity to maintain Israel’s deterrent military strength.”
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