375. Memorandum of a Conversation Between the Minister-Counselor of the Israeli Embassy (Argaman) and the Secretary of State’s Special Assistant (Russell), Department of State, Washington, May 29, 19561
Washington, May 29, 1956
SUBJECT
- Jordan Waters and Arms for Israel
Mr. Argaman, Minister Counselor of the Israel Embassy, asked to see me and we met at lunch. After some general discussion about present Soviet intentions in the Middle East, Mr. Argaman raised two specific points.
- First, he asked whether the Department had formulated its views in connection with the possibility of giving a statement to the Israel Government, in return for an agreement by the IG not to start work at Banat Yaacov, that the United States would support Israel’s right to divert Jordan water at a later date. I told Mr. Argaman that the matter had been under careful study; that there had been serious question about the reaction that might be expected if it appeared that the United States had bargained a $75,000,000 loan for Israel’s agreement to delay work at Banat Yaacov; and that in general we had felt that a decision on the question should be delayed pending clarification with respect to the nature of Security Council action on Hammarskjold’s trip to the Middle East2 and with respect to possible next steps by Hammarskjold. I gathered from Argaman’s remarks that the IG was not presently thinking in terms of a tie-in between the Export-Import Bank loan and the Banat Yaacov question, but was interested in an agreement between the two Governments whereby Israel would agree to defer action at Banat Yaacov and the United States would agree to support Israel’s right to divert water from the Jordan at a later date.
- Secondly, Argaman said that the IG was extremely anxious about its arms acquisitions. He asked whether I had any information that would bear on that. I told him that the latest word from Canada was that no action had been taken by the Canadian Cabinet but that it might act on the matter next week.