Michael Piper and Final Judgment

[Magda Hassan]

The point here is that Kennedy was very concerned with Israel's nuclear program, and determined to put a stop to it. When I asserted that JFK was strongly opposed to Israel's nuclear program in that thread, Mr. Coogan responded with ridicule.

Yes, the UAR is mentioned, but as IATB goes on to state (p118):

Although NSAM referred to both Israeli and Egyptian nuclear programs, Israel was its main concern. Israel was percieved as being close to making critical nuclear decisions but US intelligence did not know enough about where the Israeli program was heading.

The fact is Kennedy had to invoke the UAR in NSAM 231 in order to maintain the perception of even handedness but Kennedy and his advisors all knew that no other country in the Middle East was working on a nuclear program except Israel.

As for Kennedy being unable to stop Israel's nuclear program, I don't agree and nor did Kennedy. The reactor did not become critical until after Kennedy's death and he was prepared to risk a major confrontation with Israel in order to stop it.

Israel's early sponsor was France not the US. It wasn't until after the Arab-Israeli wars in the late 60's and early 70's that the US stepped up with meaningful amounts of money. I think you over estimate Kennedy's ability to do a thing about it apart from hold his breath to eleventy, give lectures to them or denounce the country at the UN. Which all would have been totally ignored in the same way the British were ignored before Partition. Or do you really think he was going to invade or bomb them? I am sure Kennedy was wanting to stop it but that wasn't going to happen in the real world any more than he could have stopped the UK or France with their's. I don't know why the US intelligence had trouble working out what was going on there. The French knew all about it and that it was weapons capable. Dimona was operational and had supplies that did not depend on the US to keep going until at least 1966. Though they were happy enough to game the system and get their supplies from whomever as shown by the Numec/Apollo scam and who is to say that wasn't done under the table with some knowledge of the US and with plausible deniability. They certainly never followed through with any convictions or consequences so the US don't look too upset. Just like they don't press Israel today on the existence of their arsenal so the military funding can continue. If it is acknowledged that Israel has nuclear weapons all that funding stops from that instance. The programme went critical only with regards to weapons in the mid 60's though there is some suggestion that it could have been earlier. In any case not dependent on the US for supplies or permission.

I also think you underestimate the Arab position and over estimate the Israeli position at the time. Yes, their nuclear programme was not anything like that in Israel. But it was a threat of an arms race in the region. There was much pressure to keep the Arabs on side or to at least keep them from the Soviet sphere of influence which was very appealing to some nations. The Atoms for Peace programme was used as a political tool to keep countries with in the US sphere. Arab nationalism and socialism were very wide spread in the area at the time. It was also just after the Suez Crisis and before the 6 day war so Israel didn't have all that mythology around it yet. It was just some pissant country on the Mediterranean Sea where some Jews went to live after the war surrounded by Arabs. Albeit with the fairly good and resourceful brains trust but more chutzpah than substance.