Harry S. Truman Library & Museum

RECOGNITION OF ISRAEL

A Nation is Born

As partition approached, President Truman had to decide whether to officially recognize the Jewish state that would be proclaimed on May 15th.

On May 12th, he gathered his advisers at the White House. Tempers flared. Clark Clifford made the case for recognition. Secretary of State George Marshall led the opposition, saying he couldn't vote for President Truman if he pursued recognition. President Truman weighed personal, political and strategic concerns. On May 14th he acted. America recognized the new state of Israel.

On May 14th Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion reads the proclamation of nationhood. Striking the speaker's table for emphasis, he announced, "The name of our state shall be Israel."

The American statement recognizing the new State of Israel bears President Truman's last-minute handwritten changes (view). American recognition came shortly after midnight in Palestine, just minutes after the new nation was proclaimed.

President Truman accepted the gift of a Torah from Dr. Chaim Weizmann, first president of the new state of Israel, during Weizmann's visit to the White House on May 25th, 1948. Article→