Dulles Urges Israel and Egypt to “conciliate” Their Views

The State Department revealed today that Secretary of State John Foster Dulles has urged Israel and Egypt “to conciliate their views” so that “a just settlement may be reached.” This was done by Secretary Dulles in the course of his talk Tuesday with Israel Foreign Minister Moshe Sharett and in other talks with top Egyptian diplomats, a State Department spokesman said.

Asked about reports in the press that Mr. Dulles had told the Israel Foreign Minister that the United States would like to see Israel taking a less “rigid stand on the Palestine dispute, State Department spokesman Henry Suydam said that the Dulles-Sharett meeting was a continuation of discussions which Mr. Dulles had had with both sides in an urgent effort to bring about a conciliation between the views held by Israel and those held by Egypt.

A full-scale Congressional debate on United States policy in the Arab-Israel situation may emerge in the coming session of Congress if the Administration asks for special legislation required to grant Egypt $200,000,000 to finance the “high dam” at Aswan on the Nile.

Informed political quarters reported today that many Congressmen approve the allocation in principle, but feel the Administration’s approach ignores the basic crisis facing Israel from the Communist-Egyptian arms deal. Congressional sources favoring the Point Four concept indicated they might vote for the proposed 10-year Nile project but would insist simultaneously on immediate consideration of Israel’s needs, especially action on the Israel arms list and a U.S. security guarantee. They would seek a balanced effort to promote regional stability.

Other Members of Congress, however, feel that the United States should take all possible steps to regain Egyptian favor, feeling that American support of Israel alienated the Arabs and caused the recent Egyptian arms pact with the Soviet bloc. Senate Republican Leader William F. Know land, of California, has expressed opposition to U.S. arms sales to Israel, holding that it would cause on “arms race.” But opinion does not follow party lines as important Republicans and Democrats alike are to be found on all sides of the issue.

The State Department, in private talks with Congressmen, has indicated hope that friendly treatment of Egypt would help to shift that country away from the growing Communist influence and toward the United States. State Department desire for territorial concessions by Israel to Egypt was attributed by one source to this strategy. The same source predicted State Department action on Israel’s application for arms purchases would be delayed because U.S. diplomats wish to avoid annoying Egypt at this time.

Reports received here today from Cairo told of continued heavy movement of Communist munitions into Egypt and the transit of Stalin tanks on flatcars across the Suez Canal bound for Egyptian forces on the Israel frontier.