Israeli Invitation for American
Dimona Visit
(April 10, 1961)
This memorandum describes
Israeli invitation for Americans to secretly
visit Dimona reactor site.
SUBJECT
U.S. Visit to Dimona Reactor Site
PARTICIPANTS
Avraham Harman, Ambassador of Israel
G. Lewis Jones, NEA
Philip J. Farley, S/AE
Ambassador Harman said that he had come in under instructions to convey
an invitation for an American to visit the Dimona reactor site during
the week of May 15. The Israeli Government wished the visit to be secret
since any publicity could have a most undesirable effect.
Mr. Farley said that the handling of the visit had been given a good
deal of thought on the U.S. side. Our concept had been that, on the
pattern of U.S. technical consultations with other countries engaged
in reactor development, a pair of U.S. reactor experts with competence
in planning and design of heavy water reactors might go to Israel for
discussions with the Israeli scientists and engineers engaged in the
project. Such discussions might well be very useful to the Israeli technicians.
The discussions would give an opportunity in a most natural way for
an incidental visit to the reactor site. The United States did not wish
publicity and would want to handle the trip quietly, but to label it
"secret" and make extreme efforts to avoid any knowledge of
the visit might be counter-productive.
Ambassador Harman emphasized the importance his government attached
to the visit not becoming known either before or after the event. He
recognized the possibility of a leak and thought the public line suggested
by Mr. Farley might be the proper one in that case.
Mr. Jones said that the United States had always thought of a quiet
visit. There was a good deal of Congressional interest, however, which
might lead to the Department being asked whether any American had visited
the site. He asked whether arrangements were also being made for others
to go to the site, such as British or Swedish experts, pointing out
that a special United States-Israel relationship might be desirable.
Ambassador Harman said that the invitation to the United States was
in discharge of the specific promise by Ben-Gurion that he would invite
someone from the United States.
It was agreed that Mr. Farley should advise the Ambassador directly
as to the names of the visitor or visitors whom the United States wished
to suggest and as to the acceptability of the time proposed./2/
/1/Source: Department of
State, Central Files, 884A.1901/4-1061. Secret.
Drafted by Farley.
/2/On April 28, the Department informed the Embassy in Tel Aviv that
the United States would accept Israel's invitation to allow two U.S.
scientists to visit the Dimona reactor beginning May 15. It identified
the scientists as Ulysses Staebler, Assistant Director of the AEC Division
Reactor Development, and Jesse Croach, heavy water expert employed by
Dupont at the AEC Savannah River Lab. (Telegram 798 to Tel Aviv; ibid.,
884A.1901/4-2861) The date of the visit was subsequently changed to
May 18. Additional documentation on negotiations over arrangements for
the visit is ibid., 884A.1901.
Sources: Foreign
Relations of the United States, 1961-1963: Near East, 1962-1963, V.
XVIII. |