Korean Spy Case Takes More Serious Turn (with Pollard Comment)

October 6, 1996 - David Johnston - Excerpt from The New York Times:

"...In public, both Governments have tried to play down the significance of the case involving Robert C. Kim, a civilian analyst for the Office of Naval Intelligence, because of fears that any division between the two close allies would be exploited by North Korea, at a moment of severely heightened tensions on the Korean peninsula..."

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Jonathan Pollard Comments:

It's worth nothing that

no such concern

about Arab misperceptions of the U.S.-Israel alliance was ever used to moderate the American Government's public reaction to my case. Indeed, many people now believe that such discretion

should

have been exhibited. After all, the Syrians, in particular, could have viewed the unrestrained ferocity of the public attacks on Israel as an opportunity to initiate some type of military action on the Golan. Would this have been a credible risk assessment at the time?

As you well know, the pages of history are literally strewn with instances where a momentary misjudgment by one party to an armed truce led to an outbreak of hostilities. In light of the fact that many of these situations occurred in the Middle East, I think it's reasonable to conclude that U.S. authorities should have been more responsible in their public handling of my case. Their

calculated

failure to do so should be a source of great concern to all those who value our special relationship with Israel.

Jonathan Pollard

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