Југославија и блискоисточна криза 1967–1968. године
Yugoslavia and the Crisis in the Middle East in 1967–1968

Author(s): Aleksandar Životić
Subject(s): Diplomatic history, Military history, Political history, Post-War period (1950 - 1989), Historical revisionism, Cold-War History
Published by: Institut za noviju istoriju Srbije
Summary/Abstract: The crisis in the Middle East in 1967 left extremely durable marks not only on the relations in the Middle East, but also on global international relations. The vehemence of the conflict between Israel and the Arab nations caused the reaction not only of the countries from the region and both super-powers, but also of other major powers and smaller countries, particularly the non-aligned ones. As a non-aligned country with a tradition of very close ties with Arab countries, Yugoslavia took an active part in the events caused by the brief Third Israeli-Arab war in which the armies of the Arab nations had been routed. Ever since the crisis started, the Yugoslav administration reacted swiftly, participating in a number of actions aimed at helping the Arab countries and alleviating the consequences of the disastrous defeat of their armies. The Yugoslav diplomacy was particularly active in evacuation of the Yugoslav Blue- Helmet contingent stationed in Sinai, which was successfully done. Considerable military and economic aid was sent to the Arab countries. In the diplomatic field Yugoslavia advocated the interests of the Arab nations, insisting on a compromise solution – which at certain point led to a brief cooling of the Yugoslav-Arab relations caused by the rigidity of the Arab nations. The Yugoslav attempt at diplomatic mediation was based on day-to-day contacts with great powers, with an attempt at broader and more versatile engagement of the non-aligned countries with the aim of strengthening the position of the Arab countries. However, the crisis in the socialist world in 1968 and the aggravation of the conflict in the Far East, particularly the war in Vietnam, coupled with the transition of the process of solving the Middle East crisis into a slower, negotiatory phase, caused the Yugoslav diplomacy to show less interest in the removal of the consequences of the Middle East crisis.

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