Britain’s Foreign Secretary, Lord Carrington, will visit Israel within a month or two, officials here said today. They said contacts are proceeding to set an exact date for the visit.
Carrington first indicated his desire to visit Israel when he met with Foreign Minister Yitzhak Shamir at the UN General Assembly last fall. Since then, however, the British statesman has been involved in some angry rhetorical exchanges with Premier Menachem Begin, mainly over the issue of Britain’s participation in the Sinai Multinational Force, and Observers (MFO).
With that issue apparently on the way to resolution, the time is considered right by both countries to make practical preparations for Carrington’s visit here. On the MFO, diplomatic contacts are understood to be under way with a view to eliciting one final “clarification” from Britain and the other three European participants — France, Italy and Holland — as to the terms of their joining the force.
Israeli officials continue to be confident that the clarification will be forthcoming and the four states will contribute contingents to the MFO.
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