SUEZ CANAL BASE

Press, Volume XC, Issue 27443, 1 September 1954, Page 11

SUEZ CANAL BASE

Israel Critical Of Britain

JERUSALEM, August 30. Mr Moshe Sharett, Prime Minister of Israel, said today that Britain had “completely ignored” Israel’s interests during the negotiations with Egypt on the Suez Canal base. During a foreign affairs debate in Parliament, he said the agreement was framed as if Israel did not exist, as if no formal declaration had been made by Egypt asserting her determination to continue the war, and as if no public threats to attack Israel had been uttered.

Mr Sharett said that Britain’s duty should have been to make the evacuation contingent upon the acceptance by Egypt of the obligation to make peace with Israel.

If such a condition was impracticable or undesirable, Britain should at least have tried to offer special assistance to Israel to strengthen her against military superiority which is being granted with British help to a State implacably hostile to Israel and liable to attack her.

Mr Sharett’s attack ajso covered the United States Government.

“The United States has publicly given its blessing to this settlement and therefore shares the responsibility for it,” he said.

The Prime Minister singled out Article 5 of the agreement referring to the “reactivation” of the base, which means its reoccupation by the British in certain circumstances.

He said that not only was Israel omitted from the list of countries which, if attacked, enabled the base to be “reactivated” by the agreement, but said that such “reactivation” may take place in the event of an attack on Egypt, or Turkey or “any country which at the time of the signing of the present agreement is a party to a joint defence treaty with the Arab League States.” “So this Arab League Security Pact, which is nothing but an instrument created for the purpose of waging war against Israel, nas now been found worthy of official recognition by Britain, and, indirectly, of approval by the United States,” said Mr Snarety , “The attitude of the great Powers of the free world signifies, in effect, that Israel is being abandoned to her fate, as if she had no place among the countries of the East, or as if her possible fate was the concern of no-one.”