Defense Secretary James Schlesinger was asked by TIME Diplomatic Editor Jerrold L. Schecter to recount the Department of Defense's role in the decisions to ship U.S. arms to Israel during the Yom Kippur War. The Defense Secretary's version of that critical week's decisive events:
There were two premises to our initial policy: that Israel would quickly defeat its foes, and that the U.S. should maintain a low profile and avoid visible involvement. While from the outset it was agreed that we would supply munitions and major equipment replacements to Israel, it was specifically directed that the Military Airlift Command (MAC) would not...
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