British Foreign Secretary Reports Progress in Big Four Mideast Talks

British Foreign Secretary Michael Stewart said here today that progress had been made at the first two meetings of the Big Four on the Mideast and that the escalation of Mideast fighting had made more rapid progress essential. Mr. Stewart spoke to reporters after an hour-long meeting with United Nations Secretary-General U Thant. He was accompanied at the meeting by Lord Caradon, Britain’s Ambassador, and its representative at the Four Power talks.

Mr. Stewart, who left for Washington to attend the 20th anniversary of the North American Treaty Organization, said that Mr. Thant had “agreed on the urgent need of progress in the Four Power talks.” He said progress had been made in the two rounds of talks last Thursday and again Tuesday. He declined to say whether the East-West positions had been brought closer together at the sessions or whether they were still far apart. “I hope the Four Powers will be able to reach such a measure of agreement as to enable (UN) peace envoy (Gunnar) Jarring to put proposals to the parties that would lead to agreement between them,” Mr. Stewart said. The next round of Big Four talks was set for Monday at Lord Caradon’s residence.

(The New York Times, which has supported the concept of Big Four talks, warned editorially today that the talks themselves “are a spur to belligerence.” It criticized Secretary of State Rogers for his statement earlier this week indicating his belief in “Soviet-American omnipotence, the ability of the two superpowers to solve all problems when they agree” and it warned against the dangers of an imposed peace.)

(“World history is full of examples of the dangers of a dictated peace, as against one freely negotiated by the parties,” the Times said. “The Eisenhower Administration, in agreement with Moscow, imposed withdrawal on Israel without adequate guarantees after the 1957 war. A new war a decade later was the predictable result.” The role of the Big Four, the Times concluded, “should be primarily to get the parties to reconcile their differences, ultimately by direct negotiations.”)

Dr. Gunnar V. Jarring, Secretary-General U Thant’s special Mideast peace mediator, is resuming his duties as Sweden’s Ambassador to Moscow, but is not discounting his peace mission. Mr. Thant announced today that Dr. Jarring, who has been in Moscow for the Easter holiday, would be “immediately available for any renewed effort in connection with his mission…whenever developments may require it.”

It was expected that Dr. Jarring will resume his Mideast duties at a time deemed appropriate by Mr. Thant in light of possible progress by the Big Four in their current conferences.