124. Memorandum From the Ambassador to Lebanon (Heath) to the Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern, South Asian, and African Affairs (Allen)1
SUBJECT
- Lebanese Request to Purchase Arms
Ambassador Khouri, Lebanon, asked to see me before his appointment with Assistant Secretary Allen since his Government had suggested he “take advantage of” my presence in Washington.2
Khouri’s request to purchase a relatively small amount of armament (less than the seven million dollars’ worth listed by the Lebanese Government several weeks ago) is a legitimate one. Its small army of less than seven thousand could not take the lead in any offensive operations against Israel and, if war should unfortunately [Page 185] recur, its role might well be only a repetition of the token operations it performed in 1948.
If we plan to sell Israel arms, it might be tactically desirable to approve the Lebanese request first. I am at present opposed, however, to Lebanon’s request that these arms be furnished at a substantial reduction in cost. Lebanese official and public opinion would never believe that we had furnished armament at a financial loss to the US Government nor would it be particularly grateful if it did believe so. The Lebanese Government instructed Khouri to say that Lebanon had received offers of armament at bargain prices from other countries but did not specify what countries. If Czechoslovakia has offered arms, political opposition to their purchase would probably arise in Catholic or other circles in Lebanon, or such opposition could be created.
. . . . . . .
- Source: Department of State, Central Files, 611.83A/1–2356. Confidential. Heath was in the United States to serve as a Senior Adviser to the U.S. Delegation at the Tenth U.N. General Assembly, beginning September 11, 1955. After this service, the Department granted Heath home leave.↩
- Heath lunched with Khouri on January 24. According to Heath, Khouri remarked that Lebanon had requested only a small amount of defensive arms and sought to buy them from the United States because, in Khouri’s opinion, Chamoun wanted closer ties of all sorts with the United States. In fact, Heath noted, Khouri claimed that Chamoun would eventually like a mutual security pact with the United States, but the present state of relations between Lebanon and other Arab nations precluded this. In response to Khouri’s inquiry as to why his request of January 21 had been greeted with reserve and questioning, Heath replied that the United States was not anxious, “as a general rule, to sell arms or to contribute to an arms race.” (Memorandum from Heath to Allen, Rountree, Wilkins, and Boardman, January 26; Ibid., 783A.561/1–2656)↩