68. Memorandum of a Conversation Between the Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs (Rountree) and the United Arab Republic Ambassador (Kamel), Washington, March 9, 19591
SUBJECT
- Rumanian Immigration to Israel and American Contributions to Jewish Organizations
Ambassador Kamel referred to his earlier conversation with Mr. Rountree on March 22 and said that he had known at that time that his government has been very concerned over the question of Jewish immigration to Israel from Eastern Europe. He had now received instructions which, inter alia, informed him that the Rumanian, Hungarian and Soviet Ambassadors in Cairo had been called in and told that this question was one of “life or death” for the Arabs. The Rumanian government had subsequently stated that reports regarding Rumanian Jewish immigration to Israel were exaggerated; that only those having relatives in Israel were permitted to migrate; that this migration was permitted for humanitarian reasons; and that no Rumanian citizens of the Jewish faith under the age of 60 were permitted to leave. The Russians had asserted that no Jews were permitted to leave the USSR for Israel. The UAR had informed representatives of these countries that their statements had been noted and would be checked against other reports.
Dr. Kamel then stated that his Government had instructed him to raise with the Department the question of official and private American funds which flow to Israel every year, since, in the UAR view, this financial assistance facilitates the continued absorption of Jewish immigrants from abroad. Dr. Kamel understood that private contributions were tax-free and tax-deductible. His government believed that, [Page 153] if the US sincerely desired to work for area stability, the US authorities should not permit the continuation of these tax-free donations which were not, in fact, for charitable purposes.
Mr. Rountree replied that published figures regarding the numbers of Eastern Europe Jews emigrating to Israel had been of concern to the Department as we did not wish to see anything which would exacerbate area problems. However, these figures seemed to be substantially exaggerated, since we understood that only 16,500 Jews had gone from Rumania to Israel since September 1958. As to why the Rumanian government permitted this movement, we could, of course, not speak with authority but the Rumanian decision probably stemmed from a desire to inflame the situation.
With respect to official and private American financial assistance, Mr. Rountree emphasized that official US aid to Israel was clearly not related to the immigration question in view of the specific agreements governing its use as well as our general policy of avoiding measures which would exacerbate area tensions. Private American financing falls in either of two categories: (a) donations to philanthropic organizations in the US which are tax-deductible; and (b) purchases of Israel Government bonds, amounts for which are not tax-deductible. Mr. Rountree emphasized that, at the moment, the Israeli bond drive represented a major effort on the part of that government to obtain funds here. He noted that the question of what portion of private contributions to Jewish fund-raising organizations represented tax-deductible items is, under US law, very involved. In the past it had not been possible to differentiate between bona fide donations and portions of these funds which might, through charitable organizations, be diverted to other uses in Israel. Mr. Rountree emphasized that we understood the UAR view in this matter and wished to prevent problems in the area from becoming inflamed. He, therefore, hoped that the question of Rumanian immigration was not as serious as it had initially appeared from press reports.
Ambassador Kamel expressed appreciation for Mr. Rountree’s views. He noted, however, that the continued flow of American funds for Israel represents a weak point in US relations with the Arab countries and quoted a March 9 New York Times article to the effect that it is hoped to collect $300,000,000 in the US to be used to absorb 500,000 Jews who would be coming to Israel during the next five years. The USG should seriously consider the implications of this flow of funds and he had already raised this question with Senators Humphrey, Mansfield and Wiley. Dr. Kamel emphasized that the Arabs would never be convinced that this American money was actually devoted to philanthropy. On the contrary, the Arabs considered that these funds were spent for arms and to facilitate the absorption of more Jewish immigrants, both developments which could only give rise to Israeli [Page 154] expansion. The UAR Ambassador emphasized that Arab concern regarding this problem should be conveyed to the highest US authorities and indicated that he hoped action would be taken to control the present flow of funds. Unless this is done, Dr. Kamel concluded, parallel efforts of US and UAR officials to improve relations between the two countries would be set at nought. He added that Foreign Minister Fawzi or his representative would be speaking to Embassy Cairo along the foregoing lines. Dr. Kamel subsequently observed that he hoped Mr. Rountree would be able to give him a further reply on this matter and that the US Embassy in Cairo might be authorized to furnish appropriate assurances to the UAR authorities.
In response to Ambassador Kamel’s inquiry, Mr. Rountree furnished general information regarding the confused Iraqi situation. The UAR Ambassador reported that Moscow radio was asserting that the rebels were endeavoring to arrange “an imperialist coup”.
- Source: Department of State, Central Files, 884A.1866/3–959. Confidential. Drafted by William D. Brewer on March 11.↩
- A memorandum of Kamel’s conversation with Rountree on March 2, during which the Ambassador stated that the UAR took the question of emigration of East European Jews very seriously is ibid., 884A. 1866/3–259.↩