Israel May Lose U.S. Military Aid
By MILTON FRIEDMAN
(Copyright 1969, JTA,
Inc.)
WASHINGTON—Israel's security
may be weakened as an indirect
result of pressures for drastic re-
do: 6, ns in U.S. defense expendi-
1.u- es
Congress has responded to public
diimands for a reduction in mill
t ry spending. The outcry was
cei,irated by exasperation over
the Vietnam war. Congress hopes
to cut at least 55.000.000.000 from
the Defense Department's appro-
priation request. But marginal
coinmitments, like U.S. involve-
Mem in the Middle East. may be
more directly affected than the
continuing war in Vietnam.
Secretary of Defense Melvin
Laird made a statement of great
interest to Israel when he an-
nounced a reduction that will cut
del ensc spending from S80,000,000,-
1.11 Io S77.00 0.000,000 a year. He
-aid: ‘N ant all the American
people to know that there will be
an u..vitable weakening of our
worldwide military posture. -
The cut - back, an effort to ap-
pease Congress. came at a time
when the Soviet Union had an
armada of more than 75 war-
ships and submarines deployed
in the Mediterranean and Indian
Ocean. The Russian deployment
was an apparent move in support
oi the Arabs with grim implica-
tions for Israel.
east one powerful outside friend
as a balance against the Soviet
Union. The Israelis are dependent
0 n the United States for categories
of military jets and other equip-
ment they can obtain nowhere else.
Some Israelis are concerned lest
the anti-military drive in America
leads to a neo-isolationism tempt-
ing to Moscow. They also ask how
their American friends can urge
President Nixon and Secretary
Laird to sell additional jets as re-
quired when many of the same
friends are furiously trying to dis-
arm the U.S. defense establish-
ment.
Ships of the U.S. Sixth Fleet
moved into positions to balance the
Soviet buildup. Yet Secretary
Laird must now de-activate and
mothhall over 100 U.S. warships.
In.•luded may he vessels of the
Sixth Flee! although that fleet is
already outnumbered by the Roy-
-tan , .
Laird cautioned that the world-
ule U.S. military capability is '
hying reduced while Soviet strength
in•reasing.
The American public naively he-
lives that a great slash in dc-
fence appropriations automatically
means a proportionate reduction of
the war in Vietnam. This is not the •
case. However, Laird made clear
that the military needs of Vietnam
will have first call on available
fends. The slashes will he made -
elsewhere. Perhaps some of the
l0n.e00 men to be demobilized wil!
be withdrawn from NATO at the
very time the Russians are esca-
lating pressures in the Mediter-
ranean.
Fifty thousand civilian employes
of the armed forces will be fired.
The level of research and develop-
ment will be reduced. Hundreds cf
Israeli army specialists and tech-
nicians are trained here under
various programs. The fate of such
training is unknown.
Defense cuts in Washington are
understandable. There has been
much waste in Vietnam and in
weapons of- dubious value. Infla-
tion is growing. Money is tight. !
The needs of the urban crisis are '
urgent.
But what is happening is that the
war in Vietnam goes on. Sopthisti-
rated new weapons will be ac-
quired. The cutback will be found
in other areas like growing reluc-
tance to become embroiled in a
new Vietnam" in the Middle East.
Soviet Vengeance Pursues Yuli Daniel's So n
LONDON (JTA)—The son of Yuli I forts to secure her husband's re- stitute. The department in which
he worked was denounced by party
Daniel, the Soviet Jewish writer lease.
activists for having employed him,
According to the Moscow jour-
who is serving a long sentence in
and the department head who had
nal,
as
quoted
by
the
Times,
a Siberian prison camp because
Alexander was the highest rank- given him the job was formally
of his criticisms of the Soviet re-
rebuked for having employed a
ing
applicant
for
admission
to
gime, is a victim of official hatred
minor without the agreement of
the physics department of the
against his parents, has been de-
the trade union committee.
nied admission to a university and , University of Tartu. Rather than
The Times quoted Dr. Strelchuk,
him,
the
authorities
re-
admit
fired from a job.
duced the number of students to rector of the institute, as having
The Times of London quoted
expressed dissatisfaction that there
be admitted and gave all the
from a Moscow underground jour-
were too many Jews in the de-
nal, Chronicle of Current Events, available places to previous ap-
partment.
being
plicants.
the
vengeance
to describe
Last November, the paper
pursued against Alexander Daniel,
A thing long expected takes the
the son of Yuli and Larissa Dan- said, the youth obtained a job at
iel. Mrs. Daniel is also being held the computer center of the Mos- form of the unexpected when at
as a prisoner because of her ef- cow Construction Engineering In- last it comes. —Mark Twain.
Some banks pay you
high interest on your
savings.
And make youpay it
all back for checking.
Sad but true, but it can happen if
you have $500 in savings in an ordinary
bank, and you're checking there, too.
Figure it out: You spend an aver-
age of $25 a year on checking charges, just
what your $500 in savings earns for you
at 5% . Which nets you exactly nothing
for your trouble.
But not with Commonwealth's
5% Golden Passbook.
We pay you the highest possible
bank interest in Detroit and give you a
free checking account. You pay no ser-
vice charges, and the only balance you
have to keep is enough to cover the
checks you write.
El
That's like having an extra $500
earning interest. So if you have $500 in a
Golden Passbook, you've actually got
$1000 in earning power.
Yet your money is handy. You can
withdraw your savings during the first
ten days of any interest quarter. (Or with
just 90 days' notice in between times.)
Switching your funds is easy. Just
bring in your present passbook, certifi-
cates or other funds. We'll handle the rest.
After all, anyone who can save
$500 or more these days deserves a free
checking account. And that's what you
get from the bank that pays you more
than interest.
BANK OF THE COMMONWEALTH
Fehol Dummil lowift•
"Well, you could have said something
about it earlier."
This is resulting in increased
rather than decreased Russian
pressures. There may also emerge
a growing pressure on Israel to
make unilateral concessions for
"peace... The anti-military mood
in America would sway President
Nixon away from a military show-
down and toward appeasement at
the expense of Israel if Russia
rattled the rockets.
A senator who is a leading
contender for the Democratic
presidential nomination in 1972,
has privately told confidants that
American domestic attitudes and
requirements are such that
America must decrease involve.
ment with Israel to avoid being
"sucked into" a new military
commitment.
Israel has never asked for Amer-
ican troops, but a cardinal point of
Israeli policy is to maintain at
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
12—Friday, September 5, 1969
GET YOUR GOLDEN PASSBOOK AT THE FOLLOWING CONVENIENT LOCATIONS;
Seven Mile-James Couzens
Grand River-Fenton
Livernois-Santa Marla
8 Mile—Huntington
Grand River-Outer Drive
Southfield-13 11110
.•
•
......
:
,
..
.