Archive Report
Archive Report
Provision of Arms in Troubled Areas
Main Segments of International Arms Traffic
Disclosure by the State Department in mid-April that the United States was discussing arms transactions with five Middle Eastern countries—Israel and the Arab states of Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Saudi Arabia—pointed up the extent of this country's departure from a long-standing policy of trying to avoid contributing in a major way to the Middle East arms race. Military aid pacts with Israel and Jordan, and sales of supersonic jet fighters to Saudi Arabia, had previously been reported on the verge of conclusion. Addition of two more states to the arms recipients made the coverage east of Egypt nearly complete.
The approaching Middle East agreements give emphasis to a growing world problem—the multiplication of small or ...