White House Statement About the Deaths of the Prime Minister of Iceland and Mrs. Bjarni Benediktsson and Their Grandson
The President and Mrs. Nixon were very saddened to learn of the tragic death last night of the Prime Minister of Iceland, Mrs. Benediktsson, and their grandson. The Prime Minister was well known and loved in this country. The Prime Minister was one of the original signators of the North Atlantic Treaty in 1949. Iceland has lost a great leader and we in this country have lost a good friend.
Note: The statement was posted for the press.
Prime Minister Benediktsson, his wife, and grandson were killed in a fire at the government's summer cottage near Lake Thingvellir, Iceland, on July 9, 1970.
Richard Nixon, White House Statement About the Deaths of the Prime Minister of Iceland and Mrs. Bjarni Benediktsson and Their Grandson Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/240059