Premier Yitzhak Rabin reiterated at Sunday’s Cabinet meeting that Israel “is not a nuclear power and will not be the first state to introduce nuclear weapons into the Mideast.” The Premier’s remarks on the subject were officially published today. They were not, however, regarded as an official comment on a recent leak of a CIA report that claimed Israel possessed 10-20 nuclear weapons. Nevertheless, they could be construed as a denial of the CIA assessment.
Rabin spoke in reply to Religious Affairs Minister Yitzhak Raphael who asked if former Defense Minister Moshe Dayan’s recent public urging that Israel acquire a nuclear capability had been coordinated with the Premier. Rabin said it was not and declared that the Cabinet could not take responsibility for remarks made by individuals. Observers believe that Raphael, who belongs to the “hawkish” wing of the National Religious Party, was in effect suggesting that the government adopt Dayan’s prescription on the nuclear question.
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.
