Documents / FOIA release
This is a Central Intelligence Agency release of Foreign Broadcast Information Service coverage of the Middle East peace talks from December 1977. It collects British, Israeli and Soviet press and radio items on President as-Sadat's initiative and the planned Cairo conference. It also covers Prime Minister Begin's visit to London, Secretary of State Vance's regional tour and the Knesset debate on the peace plan. It contains no material on unidentified aerial phenomena.
“Cairo”42 pages
PPROVED FOR RELEASE CIA HISTORICAL COLLECTIONS DIVISION AR 70-14 13NOV201 V. 12 Dec 77 N 6 ISRAEL [Question] Mr Secretary, is it possible that you can get the o~her parto "that Mr Begin just mentiA . . to participate after an i.. : , r:p aftu. first of the year,, when the Cairo conference might possibly take another level or dimension? to join the peace process, as the prime minister said. All of us hope that this will be the case. And we will continue to urge that they keep an open mind and join the peace process and try and help in achieving the common goal which all of us share, because I do believe that they too want peace. [Question indistinct] [Vance] I think that we must proceed with the Cairo conference and see what happens as we go along that road. The peace process is a continuing process and hopefully, at some point, the others will join. [Question] Mr Prine Minister, you said there is a reason to be optimistic. What cause do you have for optimism? ) [Begin] Knowledge of the facts. It gives me reason to be optimistic. [Question indstinct] [Begin] We shall find another occasion, but I repeat--no, I'd like to say; the secre- tary will also confirm it. This is for the first time, my friend, for 29 years that Israel and the largest Arab state, the strongest Arab state, embarked on a direct face- to-face negotiation with the purpose, the declared goal by both of them to sign peace treaties. Let us not forget this very important fact. ]t is a turning point in the history of both these countries. Now, there is a negative phenomenon, the ?Tripolitaians. But we believe it is passing, because they are interested.--they should be intbrested--in joining this effort. Now we meet, we talk, we shall go on meeting, we clarify matters, we make an effort, an intellectual effort, all of us. And therefore there is reason to be optimistic. [Richard Valeriani, NBC] Do you have any observations to make on an abstract from an editorial from the New York Times which said, and I quote: "A durable peace means [words indistinct] concessions that will go beyond Sinai and will include security arrangements with Syria and Jordan too. The price for security: abandonment of the demand for sovereignty over the West Bazik." I wonder if you have a comment on that? [Begin] Is this question intended for the secretary of states or for me? Thank you, Mr Valeriani, Irm glad to see you. I haven't seen you for a long time. Well, whatever [word indistinct] the following answers+-a very serious answer, may I say. My friends, we are now in the midst of the most delicate negotiations to establish peace after so long, protracted years of warfare between the countries. Give a chance to that [word indistinct], and everything is, as I said time and again, negotiable--of course, except the destruction of Israel--and everything will be negotiable. But the negotiations will take place in Cairo, in Geneva, in Jerusalem. With all due respect, not before the camera of our mighty friend, the television. [Michael Elkins, BBC] Mr Prime Minister, with all deference to your desire not to conduct negotiations here, can you, without going into detail, tell whether since the As-Sadat visit there has been new thinking concerning Israel's position with regard to the West Bank?
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FOIA release, from the cia-readingroom collection. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is above. 65 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.