Senator George McGovern the South Dakota Democrat who has just announced his candidacy for his party’s Presidential nomination, said here today that he supported the sale of 50 F-4 Phantom jet supersonic fighter bombers to Israel and, in addition, the sale of the more advanced TFX and VFAX jets now being developed “if the military situation warrants it.” The Senator voiced his support for Israel and deplored the belligerence of Israel’s neighbors in a statement to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. He said that while he regretted the need of any nation to arm itself, “there is no doubt in my mind that Israel is faced with this necessity” because “many of her neighbors have devoted large portions of their financial and human resources to various types of anti-Israel activities” and “continue to proclaim their determination to destroy Israel and consistently refuse to meet with its representatives.” In an apparent reference to U.S. arms supplies to Jordan, Sen. McGovern said he was “opposed to any sale, loan or gift of military equipment to nations displaying such a belligerent attitude as that of Israel’s neighbors.”
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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.
