U.S. Efforts on Passage of Israel Cargo Through Suez Kept Secret

Official government circles today continued to maintain silence on the efforts being made by the United States with regard to the Danish freighter Inge Toft still being held by the Egyptian authorities at the entrance to the Suez Canal because its captain refuses to unload Israeli cargo which Egypt wants to seize.

At the same time, Israel’s Charge d’Affairs here, Yaacov Herzog, today conferred with the Acting Assistant Secretary of State for United Nations Affairs, Walter N. Walmsley, and it is presumed that they discussed the Inge Toft situation.

American circles claim that confusion still surrounded the situation and that no clarification was available as to the final position of the United Arab Republic on this matter. They assert that there has been no change in the U.S. position supporting full freedom of navigation for all nations through the Suez Canal; but, owing to the delicate nature of the negotiations, they refuse to divulge what action the U.S. Government has taken in Cairo.

As the matter stands now, it is clear that the U.S. has left no doubt with the parties concerned as to its position, and that a series of contacts on a very high level has taken place in Cairo. A report from Cairo, apparently inspired by Egyptian circles, went as far as to express concern that the Inge Toft crisis is “threatening to dissolve in one stroke the carefully nurtured and improving relations between the U.S. and the U.A.R.”