A successful Congressional effort to end the Defense Department’s $383,000,000 revolving arms sales credit fund would not affect other means of supplying American arms to Israel, Sen. Stuart Symington. Missouri Democrat, said yesterday in a statement on the Senate floor.
A number of Senators and Representatives are seeking an end to the revolving fund after it was learned that the Defense Department has used the fund to guarantee $591,000,000 for the purchase of United States weapons by 14 underdeveloped nations, including Israel, in 1966 and 1967. The Administration, seeking to defeat in the Senate a Foreign Relations Committee amendment to abolish the fund, has been telling Congressmen that this would hamper arms sales to Israel.
Sen. Symington, a leader of the Congressmen in the fight on the fund, denied this. He said that the President would keep his authority under the Foreign Assistance Law to sell weapons to Israel, without legal limit, from Defense Department arsenals, on a three-year credit basis. He said the President also could grant up to $300,000,000 in weapons to countries whenever he considers this “vital” to United States security. Sen. Symington added that Israel’s credit was good enough to qualify it for commercial bank loans to finance arms purchases.
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