Office of the Historian

182. Message From President Eisenhower to Prime Minister Ben Gurion1

Washington, March 2, 1957.

My Dear Mr. Prime Minister: I was indeed deeply gratified at the decision of your Government to withdraw promptly and fully behind the Armistice lines as set out by your Foreign Minister in her address of yesterday to the General Assembly. I venture to express the hope that the carrying out of these withdrawals will go forward with the utmost speed.

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I know that this decision was not an easy one. I believe, however, that Israel will have no cause to regret having thus conformed to the strong sentiment of the world community as expressed in the various United Nations Resolutions relating to withdrawal.

It has always been the view of this Government that after the withdrawal there should be a united effort by all of the nations to bring about conditions in the area more stable, more tranquil, and more conducive to the general welfare than those which existed heretofore. Already the United Nations General Assembly has adopted Resolutions which presage such a better future. Hopes and expectations based thereon were voiced by your Foreign Minister and others. I believe that it is reasonable to entertain such hopes and expectations and I want you to know that the United States, as a friend of all of the countries of the area and as a loyal member of the United Nations, will seek that such hopes prove not to be vain.

I am, my dear Mr. Prime Minister,

Sincerely,

Dwight D. Eisenhower2
  1. Source: Department of State, Central Files, 674.84A/3–257. Confidential. The Department of State transmitted the text of this message to the Embassy in Tel Aviv in Niact telegram 835, March 2, 6:08 p.m., with the instruction: “Please deliver immediately to Prime Minister following message from President. Pursuant arrangements made with Ambassador Eban, text will be released midnight Washington time March 2.” Telegram 835 was drafted by Dulles and cleared with Herter, Phleger, and Rountree. The message was released at midnight, March 2; the source text is the White House press release.↩
  2. Printed from a copy that bears this typed signature.↩