201409 12 - Israel Crosses the Threshold II: The Nixon Administration Debates the Emergence of the Israeli Nuclear Program

DOD’s Paul Warnke Warned Israeli Program is “the Single Most Dangerous Phenomenon In an Area Dangerous Enough Without Nuclear Weapons” President Nixon Overrode Near Consensus of Senior U.S. Officials on Threat Posed by Israeli Nuclear Program in 1969. NSSM 40 and Related Records Released in Full for First Time

During the spring and summer of 1969, officials at the Pentagon, the State Department, the Central Intelligence Agency, and the White House debated and discussed the problem of the emergence of a nuclear Israel. Believing that Israel was moving very close to a nuclear weapons capability or even possession of actual weapons, the Nixon administration debated whether to apply pressure to restrain the Israelis or even delay delivery of advanced Phantom jets whose sale had already been approved. Read more.