Secretary Rusk Says U.S. Policy is Committed to Israel’s Security

Secretary of State Dean Rusk said today that “this Government’s policy of commitment to Israel’s welfare and security, and its capability and intention to deter potential aggression in the Near East, are clear and are fully understood by all the nations of that region.”

The Secretary said in a letter to Rep. Leonard Farbstein, New York Democrat, that “these policies have provided and should continue to provide effective protection to Israel against possible aggression.” Mr. Rusk stated that he shared the Congressman’s concern “about the possibility of an arms race in the Middle East and the ever-present threat of a renewed disruption of stability.” He said the United States has “consistently and patiently worked to reduce the threat of an arms race in the Middle East, and to promote peaceful resolution of the long-standing conflicts among nations there.” He added that “we continue to do so.”

Rep. Farbstein had urged the Department to implement the Congressional amendment authorizing severance of aid to the United Arab Republic. But Mr. Rusk replied that “to administer the aid program and to coordinate it with our foreign policy objectives, flexibility is required. Circumscribing in detail the administration of an assistance program in a particular country reduces that flexibility and hampers the execution of policies, with whose goals I am sure you agree, in an area of the world marked by uncertainty, instability and rapidly changing political patterns.”

Rep. Farbstein declared in Congress that “many members of the Congress and millions of citizens concerned about the preservation of peace in the Middle East” are gratified that President Johnson has asked Mr. Myer Feldman to continue serving as deputy counsel to the President and personal adviser on Near Eastern issues.