alternatehistory.com

May 20, 1967

Johnson cancels trip to Expo ‘67

With the war dragging on in Vietnam and war on the horizon in the Middle East, President Johnson has set his sights on a new front: Canada. In a terse letter to Canadian Prime Minister Lester Pearson, Johnson wrote that he and his wife would be unable to attend the Expo next week, citing the Middle East crisis as the reason for his absence. But his chilly relationship with Pearson has led some to believe that Johnson has other reasons for declining the invitation. [1] Negotiations between the United States and Canada over compensation for radiation-contaminated farmland have reportedly reached an impasse. Meetings between Canadian Ambassador to the United States Edgar Ritchie and his American counterpart, William Butterworth, have been unproductive, in part because of political infighting in the Pearson cabinet.

The neighborly spat between the US and Canada comes as tensions flare in the Middle East. Last week, in response to a false Soviet intelligence report which claimed that Israel was massing troops on Syria's border, Nasser told his people that Israel troops are placed on Syria's border. The next day, he deployed his troops in Sinai near the border with Israel. Two days ago, President Gamal Abdal Nasser of Egypt demanded the withdrawal of the UN Emergency Force in the Sinai Peninsula. Yesterday, U.N. Secretary-General U Thant complied with Nasser’s request and withdrew the UN peacekeepers from the region. [2]

Rumor has it that Nasser plans to close the Straits of Tiran to Israeli bound shipping, though that would likely be considered an act of war by Israel. President Johnson succinctly set forth America’s position in two sentences: “To the leaders of all nations in the Near East, I wish to say what three Presidents have said before: that the US is fully committed to the support of the political independence and territorial integrity of all nations in the area. The US strongly opposes aggression by anyone in the area.” [3]