Defense Minister Shimon Peres said on his return from the U.S. last night that he had found an attitude of sympathy and understanding toward Israel’s military and economic needs at his meetings with Administration and Congressional leaders in Washington. He insisted that the U.S. attached no conditions to future Israeli arms purchases and demanded no further Israeli concessions or territorial withdrawals in return for military assistance.
Peres said he did not believe the U.S. would sell arms to the Arab states. He observed that U.S. arms sales to Egypt would only open up competition with the Soviet Union with the result of increased tension in the region. The Defense Minister disclosed that Israel would purchase American F-14, 15, 16 and 17 combat aircraft which he described as the best answer to the new Soviet MIG-23 that the Russians have begun supplying to Syria.
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