Office of the Historian

43. Telegram From the Embassy in France to the Department of State1

Paris, January 27, 1956—6 p.m.

3373. Reference: Department telegram 2714.2 Counselor Israeli Embassy Bendor told Embassy officer last night State Department assured Ambassador Eban U.S. Government would permit French Government to make available 12 MDAP Mysteres IV–A planes for delivery Israel. He added that French Government told him U.S. permission to release planes would come to Foreign Office through this Embassy to whom French Government originally addressed its request.

Bendor is pressing us for information on status Department’s alleged action in authorizing French to release MDAP Mysteres to Israel.

We propose to reply to Bendor if and when he approaches us again that this Embassy has no further role in this matter and that he should deal with Quai d’Orsay. Embassy also intends to advise Foreign Office of our position vis-à-vis Bendor.

From foregoing Department will observe that on both French and Israeli sides there is disposition to cast US in role of “granting permission” for making these planes available to Israel, position which may subsequently be exploited at US expense.3

Dillon
  1. Source: Department of State, Central Files, 784A.56/1–2756. Secret. Received at 5:38 p.m. Repeated to Rome, Tel Aviv, and London.↩
  2. Document 40.↩
  3. Referring to this telegram on January 30, Ambassador Lawson suggested that he “make clear to GOI that decision of Mysteres rests solely with French Government.” (Telegram 759 from Tel Aviv; Department of State, Central Files, 784A.56/1–2756)↩