A proposed resolution in the House Foreign Affairs Committee that would have called for the designation of a special committee of delegates to represent the United States at Israel’s tenth anniversary celebrations died because of State Department intervention, it was learned today.
The state Department expressed the view through private channels that such a resolution would weaken American diplomacy in the Middle East and embarrass American relations with the Arab states. It has been the policy of the Department to minimize official U.S. identification with the Israel anniversary celebration, according to well informed Congressional sources.
Congressmen reported they were told by State Department officials that the Executive Branch of the government sought to avoid identification with the Israel anniversary, and for that reason President Eisenhower designated the Ambassador on the scene to represent him rather than send a special delegation.
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