Kenneth Keating the new United States Ambassador to Israel, presented his credentials to President Ephraim Katzir at the Presidential residence here today and spoke of the cause of peace to which he said both his country and Israel were ardently dedicated.
In a meeting with Foreign Minister Abba Eban the American diplomat said the U.S. would do its best to assure that Israel’s interests were not harmed in the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) convention which opened today in Rome. (See other stories Page 1 and 2). It was the second time during the last four days that Keating confirmed the U.S. attitude to Eban.
The 73-year-old former U.S. Senator from New York and former Ambassador to India, was saluted by a military band on the Presidential grounds. Keating told Katzir that he starts his new office with deep personal feelings. He observed that his life-long interest and concern with the destiny of the Jewish people “paralleled the sympathetic concern that my nation has demonstrated” toward Israel. “Together, our nations, by their example of friendship and mutual respect, can contribute to the welfare of our neighbors on this planet,” he said.
Katzir, responding, stressed that the main goal of Israel was to achieve peace in this area, “a goal to which both the Israeli government and people are dedicated.” Keating is the sixth U.S. Ambassador to Israel. He succeeded Ambassador Walworth Barbour who retired several months ago.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
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.
