Large transports of arms from Czechoslovakia destined for Egypt are passing through Austria, en route to the Yugoslav port of Flume, it was reported here today. Austrian authorities declared that they are not in a position to hinder these transports since they are sent in sealed cars and in full compliance with existing international transit regulations.
The transports passing through Austria contain light material packed in boxes. Heavy material is being shipped by Czechoslovakia to the port of Flume through Hungary. Communist technicians and secret police supervise the shipments, according to information received here.
Well-informed sources here also stated today that Soviet jet fighters of the MIG 15 type, which were used in the Korean war, as well as two-motored light bombers able to fly 500 miles per hour, are flying from Hungarian airports to Egypt, the pilots being partly from Communist countries and partly Egyptians trained in Czechoslovakia.
Western diplomats term the shipment of Communist arms to Egypt through Yugoslav ports on Yugoslav ships “a masterpiece of Tito’s double-edged policy.” They point out that on one hand. Tito discusses with U.S. Secretary of State John Foster Dulles the maintenance of peace in the Middle East, while on the other hand he undermines the Western defense system against Communism by permitting the use of Flume as the port for transshipment of Communist arms to Egypt.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
