Defense Minister Ezer Weizman briefed the Cabinet today on the military aspects of the peace treaty with Egypt, now in the final stages of drafting in Washington. Deputy Premier Yigael Yadin took up the political aspects and will continue his briefing tomorrow when the Cabinet meets again in special session to wind up its discussion. The decision to convene again tomorrow means that Weizman will not rejoin the Israeli delegation in Washington until Tuesday.
The Cabinet is expected to give final approval to the military annex of the projected treaty and also to endorse new compromise formulations on some key political provisions. It has been resolved, as the Jewish Telegraphic Agency reported last week, to begin negotiations on the West Bank-Gaza Strip autonomy program within the next few months.
Egypt will be able to demonstrate thereby a tangible political linkage between its treaty with Israel and progress toward resolving the issues on the West Bank. It is understood, however, that the legal “linkage” formulations that Egypt wanted to incorporate in the treaty itself have been largely omitted, to Premier Menachem Begin’s satisfaction.
GOVERNMENT CIRCLES OPTIMISTIC
The atmosphere in government circles is decidedly optimistic. Officials here believe the major hurdles have been surmounted and the conclusion of a peace pact is not far off. Their outlook was strengthened by President Anwar Sadat’s dramatic refusal to receive a four-man delegation sent to Cairo yesterday from the Arab rejectionist summit conference in Baghdad in a last-ditch effort to persuade him to renounce his peace initiative
“My message, let them hear it now, is that billions of dollars will not buy the will of Egypt,” Sadat declared. He told parliament that Egypt “is about to sign a peace agreement that will restore our full sovereignty (over Sinai) and guarantee the Palestinians the restoration of their rights. We are on the threshold of restoring our confidence and dignity, “he said.
Sadat today received a progress report on the Washington talks from Acting Foreign Minister Kamal Hassan Ali and Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs Usama Al-Baz. The two flew back to Cairo last night, almost at the same time the Arab delegation left the Egyptian capital to return to Baghdad.
DISCUSS INTEREST LOAN FROM U.S.
The Israeli Cabinet also discussed today Begin’s statement in New York last Thursday that Israel was asking for a 25-year low-interest loan from the U.S. to finance its withdrawal from Sinai rather than a grant. That took a number of ministers and Treasury officials by surprise and there seemed to be some confusion over what formula will emerge from Washington. Housing Minister Gideon Patt supported Begin’s position. He said it was important for Israel’s image to renounce a grant in favor of a loan.
According to senior Treasury officials, part of the American assistance will take the form of a loan and part a grant. They noted that the usual U.S. aid package was composed of two-thirds grant and one-third low-interest loan payable over 30-40 years. Finance Minister Simcha Ehrlich and Amiram Sivan, Director General of the Finance Ministry, will go to the U.S. Tuesday to discuss the extent and form of aid with American officials. Ehrlich will spend 10 days in the U.S.
In the expectation that a treaty with Egypt will be completed shortly, officials here tend to favor Begin’s proposal that the signing ceremonies take place in Oslo on Dec. 9, a day before he and Sadat are presented with the 1978 Nobel Peace Prize.
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