Official sources said today they had no information to confirm reports from Togo that it was about to break diplomatic relations with Israel. According to reports from Lome, capital of the West African republic. the Israeli Ambassador Yehoshua Rush, was summoned by the President, Gen. Etienne Eyadema.
Yesterday, Eyadema was reported to have expressed “grave concern” over “the continued occupation of Arab territories” by Israel. This apparently gave rise to rumors that Togo would follow the lead taken by Cuba at last week’s non-aligned nations summit conference in Algiers and break ties with Israel. Togo was one of the 76 nations attending the non-aligned conference which adopted resolutions condemning Israel.
Official sources here said all they knew was that the Israeli Ambassador in Lome was having a routine scheduled meeting with Togo’s Foreign Minister. They said reports he was summoned by the President could turn out to be unreliable. President Eyadema was reported to have expressed his concern over the territories to the Ambassadors of the major powers, including the People’s Republic of China. According to one observer here, that indicated his remarks were merely a propaganda move.
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