Jewish Leaders Reaction to Senate Vote on Saudi Arms Sale

American Jewish leaders have interpreted President Reagan’s narrow victory on the arms sale to Saudi Arabia as a demonstration of Congressional skepticism of Saudi Arabia’s reliability as an ally of the United States and as disapproval of the Saudis’ failure to combat terrorism.

In a statement issued this week, Kenneth Bialkin, chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, said that by sustaining Reagan’s veto of the Saudi arms package by one vote, the Senate is sending a double message.

“To the rulers of Saudi Arabia, it says: stop funding Palestinian terrorism and start supporting our country’s interests in the Middle East,” Bialkin said. “To the President, it says: the time has come to demand that the Saudis play their long-promised role as a ‘positive force’ in promoting Arab-Israel peace and thus demonstrate that they are – as the Administration claims – Arab’moderates’. “

The American Jewish Congress was also encouraged by the significance of Reagan’s hairline victory and a statement from Theodore Mann, president of the A.l Congress, declared: “When the Senate, without benefit of a major lobbying effort, misses an historic override of a Presidential veto on an arms matter by a single vote, it tells us a great deal about Saudi Arabia’s weak reputation in Congress because of its activity in financing PLO terrorism and its consistently unconstructive role in the Middle East peace process.”

American Jewish Committee president Theodore Ellenoff also issued a somewhat optimistic statement about the close Congressional vote and of the agreement by the Saudis to withdraw their request for the handheld Stinger missiles, an ideal terrorist weapon.

“The overwhelming Congressional opposition to the original arms package reflects the widespread American popular resentment at the failure of Soudi Arabia to support the United States openly in the struggle against Libyan, Syrian, and PLO terrorism,” Ellenoff said.