Ghana Relations with Israel Reported Closer Than with Any Country

The Times of India, commenting on Ghana’s foreign policy, said that “in relation to Israel, both the two countries are moving very close together, and it is doubtful if any other country has closer relations with Ghana today than Israel. The Israeli mission in Accra is said to be so influential as to be the envy of the entire diplomatic corps in the capital.”

Commenting further, the paper wrote: “Cooperation between the two countries has sprung up in many fields. Ghana has decided to enter into business with the Zim shipping line of Israel. This partnership is intended to build up the Black Star Line of shipping for Ghana. Forty percent of the finance in this venture comes from the Israeli company. The Trade Union Congress of Ghana has given up the British pattern of labor organization and has decided to follow the model of Israels General Federation of Labor, Negotiations are in progress with Israel for supplying about 100 technicians for water and electrical services in Ghana; and in this connection Israel’s assistant director general of water planning has already arrived in Ghana to survey the prospects in this field.

“Needless to say that this particular trend in the country’s foreign policy is causing anger against Ghana among the Arab countries. President Nasser is known to have been writing long and frequent letters to Dr. Nkrumah on this subject. But this side of foreign relations is something which the Prime Minister of Ghana will no doubt attend to when the Pan-African Congress–in which all the Arab States in Africa are participating–meets in Accra in the course of the next few months. Dr. Nkrumah will probably point out to these Arab countries that of all the uncommitted and newly independent countries Israel is the only one which has a surplus of technicians, whom Ghana so badly needs,” the Times of India stated.