A display of American military materiel, particularly articles as conspicuous as Patton tanks, would be desirable in the Middle East at this time in view of Syrian developments, it was learned today in circles close to the State Department.
However, the Department declined officially to give any breakdown in United States military assistance. The refusal to make public this information came on the heels of a report that the United States was planning to send Jordan a number of Patton tanks as part of its $10 million military aid program.
(London sources reported that American officials were willing to put tanks into Jordan’s hands in the hope they would prove a calming influence in the Middle East. Up to now, these sources said, the United States had restricted tank equipment to spare parts for Centurion tanks with which Britain had equipped the Jordan forces. )
Israelis are concerned over the likelihood that in this instance, as in almost every other crisis in the Middle East, arms are being poured into the neighboring, hostile Arab states. This concern has repeatedly been pressed upon Washington and London.
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.
